Schoolstuck
by ghostpirates
Summary: All: Get thrown to Earth by the Scratch, back to the day the kids' game started, and start school. -School AU starting after the Scratch was initiated. Pairings galore, obviously. The idea just wouldn't leave me alone. Enjoy, hopefully.
1. In Which Vriska is a Bitch

_Author's Notes:_

_A few things before I leave you to reading and probably never put any more author's notes (unless it's to answer reviews or something important):_

_1) Tavros is still crippled (no metal legs, sadly), Sollux goes back to being blind, Gamzee is _less _insane but not completely back to normal, Kanaya is not a vampire; really, just put them all back to how they were before all the craziness started.  
>2) I suck at coming up with creative curses or anything like that, so if Karkat doesn't curse colorfully enough, feel free to help by giving me suggestions.<br>3) They have been on Earth for at least three years, making them all around sixteen or seventeen and in junior year of high school. I realize the writing might make it seem like it hasn't been that long at first, but I can't really do anything about it. Also, they use block scheduling because I hate regular scheduling. If you don't know what block scheduling is, it is where you have four one and a half hour classes half the year, and four different classes the second half. So, a schedule would be like this: _period 1, period 2, period 3, lunch (30 minutes), period 4. _You actually waste a few school days this way ;)  
>4) As an add on to the one above, I am giving them non-specific classes because this is less about them learning human knowledge and more about their relationships with each other.<br>5) This idea got stuck in my head and wouldn't go away. It had to be done.  
>6) Questions? Ask me! I don't bite.<br>7) Happy reading, and review if you feel like it!_

_P.S. Pairings will be crazy and all over the place. Some you won't even expect (maybe)! But I can tell you with certainty that the main pairing at this point (as you will read) is Gamzee/Tavros. So yeah, don't like, don't read, right? But really, if you're in to Homestuck, you have to be open to the craziness that is troll relationships._

_Disclaimer: Do not own Homestuck. Honestly, I wouldn't want to because it is amazing and hilarious as is, and I know I wouldn't be able to make it better!  
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/Schoolstuck/ _In Which Vriska is a Bitch _/Schoolstuck/_  
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Tavros Nitram rolled his wheelchair morosely down the school hallway. Each press of his hands to the wheels made his callouses known over and over. The kids around him side-stepped and skirted about him, some giving him pitying or disgusted looks. He focused on the steady movement needed to get him to his first class, the monotony of having done this every day for years since his accident. Tavros sighed, slowing minutely.

"Hey, Tav," a voice said in his ear.

Tavros jumped and almost rolled backward into the person but was stopped by hands on the handles of his wheelchair.

"Whoa, Tav, watch it. A motherfucker needs his feet all fuckin' unscathed to walk."

Tavros looked over his shoulder, and his nose brushed up against Gamzee Makara's (after Gamzee avoided one of his large horns). The lithe troll was leaning forward with his elbows resting on the handles of Tavros' wheelchair. Tavros blushed a deep orange and jerked his chair forward. Gamzee staggered but kept his balance, standing up straight as Tavros turned around.

"Hi, Gamzee, um, sorry."

"No need to be all fucking sorry, Tav; it's all motherfucking fine and shit. Anyway, you need any help getting to class?"

Tavros frowned. He wasn't some disabled - okay, he was, but he could get places just fine. Gamzee was practically insulting him by asking if he needed help.

"I think I can, uh, manage just fine."

Gamzee picked up on the hint of discontent. He raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Hey, brother, not what I motherfucking meant. I know you can get all up to class fine by yourself. I was offering a little fucking speed is all." He smiled, brilliant white fangs shining in the artificial light.

"Well, I guess," Tavros said as he twiddled the strap of the bag in his lap. "I mean, uh, you kind of made me late, anyway, so sure." Gamzee grinned mischievously and slipped behind Tavros, grabbing tightly to the handles. Tavros gulped as Gamzee returned him to his previous direction and tossed his own bag on Tavros' lap. "But, uh, Gamzee, don't go too fa -"

His protest was cut off as Gamzee sped down the hall, smiling like a maniac and purposely making near-miss collisions with the people who had sneered at Tavros earlier. Gamzee took wide turns around corners and hardly slowed even when a teacher appeared in the hall; they were very lucky they didn't hit anyone and the teacher had been looking into his classroom.

Gamzee dug his heels into the tile as they approached their classroom. The wheelchair stopped right before the door. Gamzee grabbed his bag and opened the door so Tavros could go in first. Tavros shook his head to regain his bearings.

"Thanks, Gamzee," he mumbled, rolling into the room.

The desks were only half-filled, so Tavros figured he wasn't as late as he thought he'd be. _Gamzee can run fast_, he thought. He rolled over to the space where he usually sat, but his chair less desk wasn't there. Someone in the back of the room snickered. Tavros felt tears burn at the edges of his eyes. _No! I won't cry again; it makes them pick on me more._

Tavros felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up with shining eyes. Gamzee had a blank look on his face, but his eyes were scanning the students already sitting and those coming in. The smaller troll glanced at the door and saw Terezi Pyrope stroll in, hitting people with her walking stick.

"Terezi," Gamzee said as he spotted her, "can you stay with Tavros? I'll be right back."

"Sure thing, Gamz." Her grin stretched from ear to ear. Gamzee jogged out the room, and Terezi walked up to Tavros. She prodded his leg gently then swung her stick nonchalantly to the side. He knew she was feeling for his desk; when it hit nothing, Terezi frowned and started swinging the stick back and forth as though she had meant to all along. "You okay, Tav?"

Tavros fidgeted with his wheels, rolling back and forth slightly. "Fine." He didn't trust his voice to not give something away, so he said no more.

More people filed into the classroom and took their seats. Most chuckled or smiled at Tavros; in return, they received a glare from Terezi's sightless eyes. Eventually, Karkat Vantas arrived. He took in Terezi trying to mentally melt the smiles off the students' faces, Tavros looking about ready to cry, and Gamzee's absence and slapped a hand to his face.

"Oh, Karkles, glad you could join us, hehe," Terezi said, poking him in the stomach when he walked over.

"Yeah, wonderful. Which dumbass pulled this shitty prank?"

Terezi shrugged. "I'm not sure yet, though I am quite positive Gamzee already knows."

"Guys, uh, you can sit down, if you want," Tavros said as the teacher walked in and began writing things on the board. He took his place where he would if his desk had been there. Karkat sat in Gamzee's desk, which was next to Tavros. Terezi took her spot behind the handicapped troll.

The tardy bell rang and their teacher finished writing. He turned around and started calling roll.

Halfway down the list: "Gamzee Makara."

Everyone looked to Karkat sitting in Gamzee's desk. The teacher looked up after not receiving an answer. "Mr. Vantas, what are you doing in Mr. Makara's desk?"

He jerked his head at Tavros. "Some idiot pulled a stupid prank."

"And that warrants you breaking my seating arrangement?"

"Yeah, fu- yeah. It does. Gamzee went to find Tavros' desk."

"I do not hear you explaining why you are sitting in the wrong desk," the teacher said irately.

"I'm not leaving Tavros-"

"Go to your correct seat, Mr. Vantas. I'm sure Mr. Nitram can look after himself; it is not like the absence of a desk will keep him from working or being safe."

A ripple of laughter passed over the students. Karkat opened his mouth to retort, but Gamzee opened the door, cutting him off (and likely saving him from a detention caused by foul language and disrespect of a teacher). Gamzee was pulling Tavros' desk and looked a little worse for wear, but he smiled at the little troll. He set the desk in its rightful place.

"There you go, Tav. Sorry for being all late," he said to the teacher. He went to sit in his desk, but Karkat was still there, glaring at the teacher. "Hey, I know we're all like best friends-"

"Mr. Vantas, please move out of Mr. Makara's seat."

Karkat stood abruptly and stomped off to his own desk across the room. Gamzee sat and extracted a notebook from his bag. The class settled as their teacher called the rest of the roll and started class.

Tavros blocked out the teacher's droning about some math term or other and stared down at his desk. It was his: it had all the little scratches and pictures he'd drawn on it, even the whiteout he'd used to cover up something he didn't want anyone to see, especially any of his friends. Tavros wondered how Gamzee had found it and why he had looked kind of beat up. He shrugged it off, resting his head in his hand. This wasn't the first time his desk had gone missing or other things had up and disappeared - or appeared suddenly in his path. Each time his things went missing, Gamzee or one of his other friends found them for him. Mostly it was Gamzee, though. He liked to think Gamzee was his best friend and thought the same of Tavros, but he knew that spot was filled by Karkat (not like Karkat cared much). Tavros zoned out even more, only faintly hearing Terezi tapping her cane against his desk, Gamzee taking notes, the teacher writing on the bored.

He thought about his unfortunate accident which wasn't much of an accident. It was more like one of his other 'friends', Vriska Serket, had pushed him off a cliff. She had found it hilarious at the time; actually, she still found it hilarious. Tavros didn't know why he continued to talk to her. She was horrible to him. His mind drifted back to thoughts of Gamzee; Tavros blushed.

He knew he had it bad. He was definitely flushed for the other troll, and he didn't know what to do about it. Tavros wished he had a moirail to talk to about these things.

The bell for next class brought Tavros back to the present. He realized he had done nothing all period, completely missing everything on whatever topic they were covering that day. He started to panic but was kept at bay by a sheet of paper dangling in front of his face.

"I took extra notes. I hope you can read them; blind doesn't work well with writing on lines."

Terezi dropped the paper onto Tavros' desk. He picked it up and read a bit of it. "Thanks, Terezi.

Surprisingly, you have pretty, uh, neat handwriting."

She flapped a hand. "No need. I could tell you were pretty distracted." She glanced discreetly at Gamzee, although she couldn't actually see him, so it was more a very slight turn of the head.

"W-what? No, I was thinking about, uh," he grasped at straws, "Vriska!" The last part was said louder than he intended and caught the attention of both Gamzee and Karkat, who were still in the classroom.

Terezi smirked. "Oh, really, Tav? Thinking about some sloppy make outs with your tormentor?"

Tavros blushed profusely. "I - no - I don't know." He gave up as Terezi's smirk widened into a crazy grin.

"Tav, you know you can't hide anything from my nose."

"Can we just, get to the next class?"

Tavros rolled past Terezi after stuffing the notes in his bag. He snuck a peek at Gamzee on his way out; he didn't look very happy which was really weird because Gamzee almost always had some kind of smile on his face. He didn't offer to push Tavros to his next class.

"Gamzee, are you all right?" he heard Karkat ask apprehensively, though still with a bit of attitude.

"Yeah, I'm motherfucking great."

He certainly didn't sound it.

/Schoolstuck/

Tavros was late to his next class but was grateful that his desk was still there. He had only one friend in this class: Aradia Megido. She was a gentle troll with a calming smile, and Tavros loved to talk to her; sadly, she already had a moirail.

"Hello, Tavros," she said quietly to him as he settled into a routine of taking notes and trying not to get caught up in memories and feelings.

"Hi, Aradia."

"I heard your first period desk was taken. Did you manage to retrieve it?"

"Gamzee got it for me."

Aradia smiled secretively.

"What?" Tavros said, confused.

"Nothing."

They went back to concentrating on the teacher when she started asking questions about history. Tavros hated history. It's not like he knew human history. He also did not know why they were all in a human school since they were trolls and certainly didn't need to learn all this human stuff.

He thought back to their game session. Instead of the scratch resetting the kids' game like it should have, it threw them and the trolls to Earth. It sent them back to the day the kids' session had started, John Egbert's birthday. They all landed in John's yard, the humans' guardians as well. At

first, they thought it was all a dream or they were dead, floating in those bubbles, but they slowly came to find out they were indeed alive - even those who had been dead.

The first thing they all did was celebrate. When the euphoria settled, they had to address the issue of what they were going to do, especially the trolls. How could they explain twelve aliens to the rest of the population? Luckily, it turned out only the kids and their guardians could see the trolls' true appearances. All other humans saw were some exotic human kids. None of them could reason why or how all this had come about, but they weren't complaining. Well, except for the fact that they now had to act like normal humans and go to school. That part really sucked.

The kids were happy to be back and even relished going to school for a while. Dave Strider, Jade Harley, and Rose Lalonde had convinced their guardians to move to John's city, seeing as all the trolls were there, and it would be easier for three kids to move than twelve trolls. The four kids had offered their homes to the trolls, too.

Tavros lived with Equius Zahhak and Eridan Ampora at John's; Gamzee, Karkat, and Sollux Captor lived at Dave's; Aradia, Kanaya Maryam, and Terezi lived with Rose; and Nepeta Leijon, Fereri Peixes, and Vriska lived with Jade. So far, the arrangement was working out fine, if straining on some of their patience.

Tavros scribbled more notes down, comprehending none of it. All the names, places, and dates mixed together and became a jumbled mess of "I-really-don't-care-about-this" in his head.

The period ended soon after. Tavros wished he could stand up and stretch, but that was a faraway dream. Aradia grasped the handles of his wheelchair and pushed him out the door. Tavros gladly let her.

"I noticed you were immersed in thought. Did you get all of the notes?"

"I think so. I wasn't, uh, that distracted."

"Okay. Here's your class. I'll see you at lunch, Tavros."

He waved goodbye.

"Tavros, nya~!" was his greeting from Nepeta. "Isn't today purrfect for learning? It's nice and sunny and beautiful, and I love art!"

Tavros suppressed a grin at Nepeta's enthusiasm. He, too, liked art. The humans in this class were nice to him, and he had no special desk he had to sit at.

"Nepeta, please stop your foolishness."

"Aw, but Equius, art is cattastic! I can make whatever I want, be as messy as I want, and no one cares.

I can even draw on the walls!" She motioned to the white walls the teacher had let her draw all over: it was her new shipping wall (or rather, walls, as she had made each side of the room specific to a certain quadrant). No one in the class knew the real nature of it because she had drawn the trolls in their troll forms. Hardly anyone could make out what it meant since Nepeta had used only the symbols for the quadrants. "Look, I added a new one."

She dragged Equius over to the wall for matesprits, pointing to a purple form. Tavros wheeled up next to them and gaped. This new pairing was of him and Gamzee.

"Nepeta, I, uh, think you should take that one down."

"I agree. This wall is absurd," Equius said and went to grab a towel from his backpack.

Nepeta pouted. "But you and Gamzee would make the purrfect couple! In human terms, you would be boyfriends! I learned that from Jade yesterday. Aren't human words weird?"

Tavros ducked his head, blushing worse than ever. Nepeta laughed and ran off to pounce on Equius, who was scrubbing at the kismesis wall futilely.

_How does everyone know?_ Tavros thought sullenly. It's not like he made it totally obvious or something. Or maybe he did, and he just didn't realize it? Or _maybe_, it was just Nepeta being Nepeta.

Yeah, that was it. Definitely.

Tavros took his place at the table with Nepeta and Equius. The teacher came in as the bell rang, followed by John. The human boy still wore his god tier outfit a lot, like today. He sat at their table, too, and smiled widely.

"Hi, guys!"

"John!" Nepeta jumped up and slid across the table to hug him. "What are you doing in here?"

John laughed. "I got my schedule changed. Mechanics was boring, and Dave never wanted to help me."

"Was it not ironic enough, to help you?" Tavros said.

"Nah. He was too caught up in trying to make the teacher turn it into a sword-forging class so he could make a decent sword. After the ones he lost in the game, he doesn't have anything good anymore."

"Absurd. This school would never allow something as dangerous as swords to be made," Equius interjected.

John shrugged. "I'd be more worried about guns; they are a bigger threat. But anyway, what's with all the drawings on the walls?"

"It's my shipping wall! You guys are included, too, just not as much," Nepeta said, still sitting on the table in front of John.

"Mrs. Leijon, please get off the table," the teacher reprimanded.

Nepeta returned to her seat. "Sorry."

"Today, we will be working with only paint. You may choose any topic. Collect your supplies and start working."

The students moved quickly to get the best supplies, talking loudly and generally having fun. Nepeta stood up. "I'll get your stuff, Tav!" Equius went after her to make sure she didn't spill anything.

"Karkat told me your desk was stolen."

Tavros turned to John. "Yeah. It happens a lot. Gamzee, uh, got it back for me."

"That's good! I wonder why they took it, though. No one else uses that kind of desk..."

Tavros was sometimes still amazed by the naivety that remained in John. It was kind of refreshing but also annoying. It was good he didn't always act like that.

"I'm not sure. Maybe they, uh, made a mistake."

"Maybe," John said and grinned.

Nepeta came back with three sets of paint. She set one in front of each of them. Equius had his own set and a decently thick stack of paper. Nepeta needed a lot more than one sheet of paper when she started painting.

"I think I'll draw us," she chirped. She swiped five pieces of paper and spread them out; then, she dipped her fingers into the paint and commenced painting.

Equius started sweating. "Nepeta, you are supposed to use a paintbrush."

"Finger-painting is more fun!"

They argued back and forth while Nepeta splashed color all over the pages. John meticulously painted a chess grid on his paper; Tavros did not know what to draw. John glanced at his blank paper.

"Why don't you draw your planet?"

Tavros cocked his head, thinking over the idea. He nodded and set to work.

By the time they had to start picking up, Nepeta was covered in paint and smiling proudly at her work.

It was of her, Equius, John, and Tavros, though it was hard to tell what they were doing. The only reason Tavros could tell who was who was due to the fact Nepeta color-coded everyone/thing she drew.

"Isn't it beautiful?" Nepeta said, picking up the papers that were practically glued together by the drying paint.

"It's awesome," John agreed enthusiastically.

Equius nodded, wiping sweat from his forehead with the towel from earlier. He looked like he really wanted to disagree.

Tavros smiled. "It's, different, in a good way."

"Please leave your paintings on the desk. I will put them away when they are dry," the teacher announced over the sound of the lunch bell.

"Come on, guys, hurry up!" Nepeta hopped up and down as the other three packed up.

"What's the rush? No one ever sits at our table." John seemed to debate over whether he wanted to disregard the teacher and take his picture, but he left it sitting there as he swung his backpack onto his shoulder.

"I'm hungry, and they have chicken for lunch. If there's one thing you humans know, it's food," Nepeta said, pulling on Equius' arm. "Come oooon."

"I'm going to stay and, uh, finish this." Tavros pointed to his half-finished picture. "I'll be there in a bit."

"Okay!" Nepeta dragged Equius and John out of the room.

Tavros checked to see if the teacher had left before going over to the matesprit wall. He gazed longingly at the little figures of him and Gamzee, possibly holding hands (he couldn't really tell). He reached up toward it.

"Tavros?" someone hissed gleefully behind him. Tavros retracted his hand; he dreaded turning around, especially since he knew who it was. "Is that what I think it is? It is! Oh, this is too great!"

Vriska appeared next to him, grinning viciously at the wall.

"Vriska-"

"Is _this_ the one you were looking at? This is hilarious. You're _flushed_ for him, aren't you?"

Tavros stuttered out something unintelligible. Vriska leaned down, placing her hands on the armrests of his wheelchair and smirking.

"These humans might all have disgustingly low-class blood and therefore not go by our hemospectrum, but we still do. You have no chance, Tav."

Tavros tried not to cry, he did, but diluted dark orange tears slid down his cheeks. He swiped his jacket sleeve over his eyes. "I, didn't think I, uh, ever did."

"Oh, poor Tav. Hey, I might just keep this quiet," she said softly. Tavros stopped wiping his eyes to look at her face: she was still smirking. "For a price."

"What?"

"Go out with me."

"W-what?" he repeated incredulously. "I, uh - no."

Vriska frowned, leaning down even farther into his space. "Are you sure about that answer?"

Tavros avoided her eyes, glancing around until his gaze fell on the picture again. He slumped ever-so-slightly. "Okay."

Vriska smiled victoriously. "Then let's go to lunch, Tav!"

She pushed Tavros out the door and headed to the cafeteria.

/Schoolstuck/

Immediately after arriving on Earth and starting school, the twelve trolls and four kids had claimed the biggest table in the cafeteria. The fact that no one had taken it was attributed to the fact that, somehow, Eridan and Feferi had become the most popular "kids" in school. It was probably because Feferi was likable in general and a natural leader, and Eridan thought himself so above everyone, they accepted him being the best without a fuss. Either way, this kept their table unoccupied no matter what. Kids in human schools were vicious, though, and a lot of them questioned why Eridan and Feferi hung out with so many less popular kids. It was frowned upon but accepted, as the two would sit nowhere else.

Their table/group had also gained a name: Astrofreaks. This came about because the trolls still liked to wear their signs on their shirts. Apparently, in the human world, these signs represented people born at a certain time or something; none of the trolls really cared, so they didn't take offense to the name.

As Tavros was wheeled into the cafeteria by Vriska, their whole table stared. Everyone was there already. Tavros blushed in shame: he did not want them to see him with Vriska, even if they were "dating" now. That statement left a bitter taste in his mouth.

Vriska put him in his normal spot at the end of the table. She glared at Aradia who was sitting on the edge of the right bench.

"Move."

Aradia's eyes narrowed. "No. Go sit at the other end."

"I'd like to sit next to my _boyfriend_."

The table went pin-drop silent; a can crunched loudly. They all looked at Gamzee, but he was staring straight ahead, the offensive can clenched in his grasp. He got up abruptly, throwing the can on his tray and walking away to dump it in the garbage can. He left, and Karkat ran after him, followed by Sollux. This gave Aradia room to move easily.

"Will you move now?"

Aradia slid her tray down the table roughly, as far away as she could from Vriska. Vriska sat down, resting her chin in her hand and smiling at Tavros.

The volume climbed slowly after the disconcerting scene. Terezi, sitting across from Vriska, struck up a conversation with the two.

"You're dating? When did this happen?" She wasn't paying any attention to Vriska; instead, she had her face turned to Tavros.

"Yes, Terezi. It happened when I found Tavros in the art room. He couldn't resist me when I confessed.

I'm not surprised; it was obvious he liked me."

Tavros cringed. Terezi picked up on this, and she tapped Tavros' wheelchair under the table. "Really?

An interesting development. Is this true, Tav?"

Tavros opened his mouth, saw Vriska's glare, and changed his mind about what he was going to say.

"Yes."

Feferi leaned around Terezi, smiling. "Are you two matesprits?"

"I think we'll use the human words, boyfriend and girlfriend, until we're, uh, sure," Tavros said quickly, before Vriska could dig him into a deeper hole. Terezi tapped his wheelchair again.

Feferi nodded and went back to talking to Eridan; Vriska got up and said she was going to get her and Tavros lunch. Terezi watched her go with narrowed eyes (they weren't allowed to wear strange-colored or unnecessary glasses in school, except Dave; he managed to get around that rule).

"Tavros, what happened?" she whispered when Vriska was finally standing in line.

"She, uh, caught me staring at Nepeta's shipping wall. She promised she, wouldn't tell if I went out with her."

"Why didn't you let her 'spill the beans' so to speak? Did you not see Gamzee's reaction?"

Tavros knew what she was implying, but he wouldn't even think about it. "Maybe he likes Vriska; it can't be because he, uh, likes me. Even if he did, I'm so low on the hemo -"

"Tavros, we're on Earth now; we go by human standards. We're all poor, so we are all on the same rung.

Don't listen to that spider bitch!"

"But, we're still trolls. We can't just, forget about blood color."

"You'd let her ruin your chance at the emotion humans call 'love'?"

Tavros hid his face in his hands. "We don't feel anything but hate and pity," he said, voice muffled.

"Are you sure?"

"Sure about what?" Vriska slammed down two trays, cutting off their talk. The food bounced around, and the milk tipped over on both.

"Sure about spending his life with you," Terezi said scathingly. She stood, giving Tavros an apologetic glance, and left the cafeteria.

/Schoolstuck/

Gamzee trudged down the hall, looking for something - preferably _someone_ - to beat up. His violent urges were still barely intact. He had heard of human drugs that would work like his sopor pies, but he refused to fall back into that almost catatonic state of never knowing what was really happening around himself. Fortunately, he quickly came to find out that simply blowing off some steam helped him control his insane personality.

The Capricorn kicked a nearby recycling bin and watched the papers and bottles scatter. Footsteps echoed behind him in the empty hall.

"Gamzee."

"Hey, motherfucking best friend."

"Look, I doubt they are actually going out; you know how Vriska is. She probably knows you like him and is being a huge bitch, or she could be blackmailing him with something."

"Why do you think I motherfucking care if they are fucking going out? Tav can all go and do whatever he wants. It's none of my motherfucking business."

A tick started on Karkat's forehead. He would have punched Gamzee if Sollux hadn't shown up and laid a hand on his shoulder, whispering a stern, "Kk."

"Gamzee, as your moirail, I think I know you better than anyone else at the moment. You like Tavros." Karkat cringed as he said moirail, finally admitting to himself what he knew all along: even if Gamzee annoyed the fuck out of him sometimes (most of the time), he was still important to Karkat. "Best friends" didn't cover the extent of their relationship.

Gamzee stared at him; then, as if in slow-motion, he turned and punched the wall.

"SHIT. WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO THAT FOR, FUCKASS?"

Karkat shook off Sollux's hand and went over to Gamzee. He took the Capricorn's hand in his, examining the broken and bleeding skin.

"Why are you such an idiot?" Karkat groaned.

Sollux also took a look at Gamzee's injury. "You thould get him to the nurthe, Kk."

"Yeah. Fuck." He grabbed him by his wrist and hauled him toward the nurse's office. "Fuck," he repeated. "You are so hard to deal with. Why do I fucking bother?"

The nurse wasn't in, so Karkat shoved Gamzee onto a bed and half-assed cleaning and bandaging his split skin.

"Why don't you suck it the fuck up and ask him out?" Karkat said in the middle of wrapping the other troll's knuckles. "I know for a fact he likes you. It's not like it's _not completely obvious_."

Gamzee's eyes were focused on the ceiling. "It's too late. I'd need a motherfucking miracle for Tav to say yes."

"Why can't we engineer a miracle?" Sollux said offhandedly.

Karkat tightened the cloth and cinched it so it would stay. He threw the materials back in the first aid box he'd found and set it on a counter. When he was done, he turned to Sollux.

"How could we possible _make_ a miracle? Actually, fuck that; why would we _need_ a miracle? We don't. Tavros likes Gamzee," he narrowed his eyes at the troll in question, "and Gamzee likes Tavros. All Gamzee needs to do is get Vriska out of the picture."

"That thouldn't be all that hard, Gz. I think Vrithka is uthing Tavroth, not really dating him. Otherwithe, Tavroth would have thaid no to her."

"Yeah, right, Sollux. Tavros is a pushover."

"Not helping, Kk."

Gamzee sighed. "Karkat, I know you are all trying to motherfucking help, but I'm not seeing any fucking point in trying."

Karkat grit his teeth. "Gamzee, I will fucking make you ask Tavros out."

"As soon as you take your own motherfucking advice and ask out-"

Karkat slapped a hand over Gamzee's mouth. "Shut. Up."

"Kk, you have a cruth?" Sollux said, chuckling. "Who ith it?"

Gamzee attempted to talk around Karkat's hand, but it did not work out well. He ended up licking the Cancer's palm. Karkat tore his hand away disgustedly, eyes burning with anger.

"If you say _anything_, I will personally fuck up any chance you have with Tavros."

"No need to get tethty, Kk," Sollux cajoled.

"_Anyway_, can we get back to the point? We are fucking setting you up with Tavros, Gamzee, whether you like it or not."

"Whatever."

"Are you kids in need of assistance?" a new voice said testily. The nurse had come back from her lunch and was standing, hand on hip, in the doorway. "If not, please leave."

The three trolls trooped out the door, the nurse watching them, hawk-like, until they had turned the corner heading back to the cafeteria.

/Schoolstuck/

_Last class, finally_, Tavros rejoiced as Vriska guided him to his science class. He had no other friends in this class, so he usually dreaded it, but with the lunch he had just had, Tavros was more than happy to be there. Terezi's departure had meant Vriska and he were alone. Vriska talked and talked about things Tavros either hated or didn't care about; she also made quips about how useless or weak he was every other sentence. The Taurus wasn't sure how anyone could get the impression they were dating. He smiled at the door to his class, pushing those thoughts to the back of his mind.

"Thanks, Vriska," Tavros said cheerfully. She let the handles go, but she did not leave. Tavros looked up as Vriska leaned down, lips pulled into a smirk. "Uh, what are you doing now?"

Vriska stopped. "I was about to kiss you. Couples do that, you know. And we _are_ a couple, are we not?"

"Y-yeah."

"Then this is fine."

Tavros cringed as Vriska's lips touched his. He refused to reciprocate in any way. It was much like the last time they had kissed. Tavros was just as unresponsive, if not as surprised, and Vriska was just as offended when she pulled away.

"No one will believe we're dating if you kiss like shit."

"I don't see how they can, uh, think we're dating when you insult me, all the time."

Vriska stood up straight. "I guess we both have to work on things. Have fun in class, Tav."

Tavros wished she would stop calling him that.


	2. In Which Vriska is Less of a Bitch

_Author's Notes:_

_Thanks to my anonymous reviewer. Much love to you~. Also, I know I said I wouldn't bother you guys with author's notes (unless, of course, you want them), but I had a few more things to say:_

_1) Gamzee's speech is not as weird because he is no longer in a sopor-induced stupor, if anyone was wondering.  
>2) My characterization probably isn't that great. D: I'm sorrryrgtkfm<br>3) This story will eventually have all the trolls/kids perspectives in it at least once. Eventually. Maybe. Yeah...  
>4) <strong>THE BIG NEWS<strong>: I have decided to update this story on a weekly schedule! (for as long as writer's block is kept at bay and life bestows me with free time) I'm not sure exactly what day, though. It will likely fluctuate, but there will be an update every week (taking into account the statement above).  
>5) Happy reading! I already have the start of the next chapter, so expect it as early as Friday if I can write enough to satisfy myself :D<br>6) A last note: I'm planning on making all chapters 4,000 words or more (nine pages or more in a word document) so you guys will have plenty to read each update. Hope you enjoy~  
><em>

/Schoolstuck/_ In Which Vriska is Less of a Bitch _/Schoolstuck/_  
><em>

The school day ended much slower than anyone wanted. Tavros waited for the last bell rush to clear before even bothering to pack up. The teacher left to go somewhere, giving Tavros ample time to clear up and leave. He packed all his notes away and zipped up his backpack; as he was about to leave, the door opened, and Gamzee walked in. Tavros stopped dead.

"Hey, Tav. You, uh… wanna..." Gamzee rubbed the nape of his neck, glancing back at the door. Tavros could see Karkat motioning violently, Sollux standing behind him and saying something to the angry troll. Gamzee shrugged and mouthed back at them. Karkat ran his finger across his throat and received a slap from Sollux.

"Gamzee? Did you, uh, need something?" he asked tentatively.

Gamzee abruptly turned back to the Taurus. "Yeah, motherfucker: are you doing anything after school today?"

Tavros raised a hand to his chin. "I don't think I am."

"Okay, well, would you fucking want to all go out with—" Gamzee cut off again, but this time it was caused by a very loud _thud_ from the door.

Both of the trolls looked to the door, where Karkat's face was pressed against the glass. His eyebrows were drawn in pain and anger. As they watched, he was pulled away, and Vriska came into the small window through which they could see. She was smiling cruelly while Karkat had a fit, arms waving wildly. Vriska shoved him aside and opened the door.

"Tav! Let's go; we are going out tonight. I thought we'd try a human date!" Vriska strode passed Gamzee without a glance, smirking at Tavros. The Taurus clung to his school bag, trying to get far away from her.

"I, uh—I should get home—"

"We're going on a _date_," she said sweetly, though her expression revealed otherwise. She steered Tavros out of the room. Leaning down, she whispered to him, "When I say we're going to do something, you fucking agree, Tav."

Tavros nodded, looking plaintively at Karkat and Sollux. Karkat started to follow Vriska and Tavros, but Gamzee halted him with a hand on his arm. Tavros turned to stare at his hands in his lap. The three trolls stood there as Vriska left with Tavros.

/Schoolstuck/

"THAT—THAT—" Karkat mimicked the sound one would get if they keyboard-mashed. "THAT BITCH. She's being a bigger bitch than usual! What the fuck!"

"Vrithka theems to have worthened thince we met up with John and the otherth."

Gamzee walked in the opposite direction of Tavros and Vriska, heading for the rear exit. Karkat spluttered, dragging Sollux along after the Capricorn. Sollux, on the other hand, had a different agenda. He switched Karkat's grip on his wrist so he was pulling Karkat.

"Let'th leave him alone, Kk. Gz will be fine for a little while."

"A 'little while' is plenty enough fucking time for Gamzee to kill someone! Sollux, let me go." Karkat tugged hard, but Sollux's grip was strong.

"Kk, we are going to walk home. Gz can find hith way back without killing anyone. In the meantime, you are going to tell me who your cruth is."

Karkat blushed, stumbling after he stalled too long. "I'M NOT TELLING YOU THAT."

"Come on, Kk; you can tell me anything. If Gz knowth, I thould, too."

Karkat finally stopped struggling. "I'll tell you if you let go of my wrist." As soon as Sollux released him, Karkat sprinted out of the school, turning right and heading for Dave's house.

Sollux sighed. "I really thouldn't have fallen for that," he said, shaking his head. He jogged after the troll.

/Schoolstuck/

"Gamz!" Terezi stuck her cane into Gamzee's path, glasses back on since school was over. "You smell down. Everything all right?"

Gamzee stepped over her cane and continued walking. He crossed the back field and jumped over the low wall surrounding the school grounds. Terezi pursued him, keeping pace easily. They walked down the road side by side: Gamzee took in his shoes passing over the cement sidewalk, and Terezi studied him. The silence lasted all of a minute.

"Gamzee, does this have something to do with Tavros and Vriska?" No answer. "I don't mean to betray Tav's confidence, but with how you're acting, I think you should know."

"Know what?"

"Vriska is blackmailing Tavros. She found out he likes you, and in order for her to keep it secret, he had to pretend to go out with her."

Gamzee stopped and looked up. "So it's my motherfucking fault she's going out with Tav?"

"What? Do I have to give you a good drubbing? How did you come to that conclusion?" Terezi waved her cane around in front of his face. "Tavros is too shy to tell you he likes you, and he thinks he's too low on the spectrum to have any chance. Vriska used that to her advantage; to what end, even I don't know. But I will use my legislacerator expertise to find out!"

"Thanks, Terezi, but why wouldn't Tav just motherfucking tell me all this?"

"Like I said, he's too shy. Plus, I don't think he knows you like him, though it is exceptionally obvious you do. That whole debacle at lunch was more than enough evidence, yet he still didn't believe me when I told him. The way I smell it, you are going to need to remove Vriska from the equation to get to Tavros."

"I hope you don't all motherfucking mean I should fuckin' kill her."

"No, no! That would be homicide – or would that be 'trollicide'? Either way, no; do not kill her. Human rules forbid senseless killing. You would go to jail if you got caught."

Gamzee raised an eyebrow. "If?"

"I don't doubt you could pull off a murder and not get caught, but do not chance it. I could help you make a plan, if you are in need of assistance?" Terezi's glasses glinted in the sunlight.

Gamzee shrugged, thinking it over. "A motherfucker can come up with his own plans. Can you just fuckin' keep an eye on Vriska?"

"Sure, Gamz. Now go home before you do something stupid. Karkles is probably having a conniption wondering where you are." She shooed him, and Gamzee turned to walk back to the front of the school. He'd only taken a few steps before looking over his shoulder.

"Thanks, Terezi."

"No reason for thanks yet, Gamz. Get going." She grinned, waving him off again.

/Schoolstuck/

Terezi made sure Gamzee was actually leaving, then she let out a breath. She wasn't sure if she should have said all she did, but Terezi figured it wouldn't hurt even if it didn't help. Gamzee needed a push or he would continue to let Vriska do whatever she wanted while Tavros was too shy to help things along. The Libra relaxed as she walked toward Rose's house. She could finally stop acting as if she was inept at getting places. All these humans thought Terezi couldn't get anywhere because she was blind, and she had to hide that she was perfectly fine at finding her way around. Being blind meant nothing to her because of her other senses, but humans would never understand that. It annoyed Terezi that she had to pretend she could not walk five feet without running in to something.

The troll swung her cane onto her shoulder and strolled down the path, smiling. She would definitely help Gamzee and Tavros get together, especially since it meant Vriska would pay. Terezi had considered her hate for the other girl, and she thought maybe there was something there…

But those thoughts should not go any further; they were for later times, when Terezi wasn't out in the open. She would talk to Dave about this tonight, yes.

With that squared away, Terezi sped up her pace.

/Schoolstuck/

Karkat got home much quicker than Sollux. He climbed the stairs slowly, panting. He had never run so much, but he was not about to let Sollux question him anymore. That would lead to bad things, very bad things, and Karkat would not deal with those things now. Gamzee might be certain his potential matesprit reciprocated his feelings, but Karkat was far from even speculating what his felt. He would never tell. Ever.

He ducked into the room he shared with Gamzee, avoiding Bro Strider as the older male came out of his room. Karkat didn't know what he did in there all the time; he never bothered to ask Dave because the Cancer wasn't sure he _wanted_ to know.

Karkat forewent his computer his computer in favor of the closet. He slipped behind all the clothes he and Gamzee had amassed in three years, sat on the floor, and shut the door. Hopefully, Sollux would not look in here, and Karkat could hide out until either Gamzee or Dave returned.

Fifteen minutes passed silently in the small space. Karkat fiddled with random things he found in the closet (they needed to clean this thing out, like really badly). He froze when he heard the floor creak outside his room, hoping it was Gamzee getting back. Light rushed into the closet as Sollux opened the door; Karkat's hope was crushed into small bits.

"Kk, there ithn't much plathe to hide in thith houthe. The clothet wath the firtht plathe I wath going to look."

"Shit, Sollux, can you drop it with the third degree? I'm not going to tell you!"

Sollux quirked an eyebrow behind his glasses. "I didn't athk you anything."

Karkat growled, glaring at Sollux. The Gemini entered the closet, too, and closed the door. Karkat scooted as far back as he could, inadvertently giving Sollux enough room to sit.

Sollux held up a glowing blue hand. The tinted light was thrown over both of them. Karkat was blushing, and the blue covering the red turned it slightly purple.

"Thince we're in here, we might ath well talk, Kk."

"There is nothing to fucking talk about. I have am flushed for someone, Gamzee knows who, and I am not telling you; that is all. Can you get out of my closet?"

"No."

"Sollux—"

"No, Kk. I'm not leaving until you tell me."

"Sollux, you're not my moirail. I don't have to tell you shit."

"Why are you tho defenthive about thith, Kk?" Sollux rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Doeth it alwayth have to be tho complicated with you? Either you're fluthing for thomeone who'th taken or—"

Karkat double face-palmed. He should have lied.

"—or you're fluthing for me."

"Yes. Now that we've established that fact, and I have been humiliated, will you leave?" The Cancer did not remove his hands; instead, he pressed them even harder into his face, thinking maybe Sollux was a figment of his morbid imagination. After a few seconds with no response, he was starting to believe he was right.

"You don't really want me to leave, Kk."

"Obviously we have fucking different definitions of 'leave'."

Karkat's hands were pried away from his face by Sollux. They stared at each other for a short time; then, Sollux leaned forward. Karkat's eyes widened, and he jerked back, hitting his head sharply against the wall. Sollux stopped, watching Karkat rub the sore spot. The Cancer winced as he pressed his fingers against the tender skin. He fixed his gaze on Sollux as the other troll moved to stand up, a hand on the doorknob.

"Sollux, I—"

"It'th fine, Kk. I gueth I wath wrong." He left, walking past Gamzee on his way to his own room.

Gamzee gave both of them a questioning look, but Sollux said nothing, and Karkat hung his head.

/Schoolstuck/

Tavros took in the popular teen hang-out that Vriska brought him to. Lots of kids from their school were hanging out, and Tavros felt very out of place. Vriska had dropped him off at a table in the back and told him to stay put. The Taurus found this bad advice as a lot of people kept glancing at him. He shuddered at the thought, but he really wished Vriska would come back soon.

In the meantime, Tavros watched the animals in the park next to the hang-out. There weren't many similarities between Earth animals and Alternia beasts. Tavros wondered if he could control these and why he had never attempted it. He figured it was because he never needed to. The danger on Earth was minimal, so the need for protection was nonexistent.

A squirrel ran across the grass and climbed up a tree. Tavros smiled at the cute mammal, forgetting the rest of the world as he unconsciously reached out to talk to it.

"Hey, wheelchair, what are you doing in our place?"

Tavros snapped out of his conversation. He turned his head to see three kids he vaguely remembered from his second period. They were standing with arms crossed, the one in the middle clearly the leader as the other two were slightly behind him. Tavros concluded he was the one who had spoken. He realized too late that he should say something.

"I, uh, I'm here with my friend."

"Yeah? Who would be friends with you, the wimpy, useless kid?" the leader taunted.

Tavros felt anger gnaw at his insides. Sure, he was pretty weak, but he wasn't useless! His friends had needed him to complete their game session. He had solved all those puzzles. He had stood up to Vriska… and gotten killed in the process.

"Nothing to say to that?" the one on the left said. The other two laughed.

Hurt washed out the anger. He lowered his gaze.

"I bet that other guy – what's his name?" The guy on the right said. He snapped his fingers a second later. "Gamzee! I bet that guy Gamzee feels sorry for you, and that's why he's always getting your shit back or helping you."

"And those other freaks you sit with at lunch, they probably only let you sit there because they're too nice to say no to a cripple!"

Tavros felt his tears slipping down his face. No one at school had ever attacked him like this. All their insults and suppositions sunk into him, infecting his brain with the idea that maybe his friends didn't like him…

The sound of a body hitting the floor brought Tavros' attention to his tormentors. The leader was lying unconscious on the floor, Vriska standing over him with fists raised. The two cronies looked surprised, mouths gaping.

"Hey, fuckers, only I get to make fun of Tav." Vriska lowered his arms, glaring at the idiots. They got into a fighting stance. "You better run, you pieces of shit, before I beat it into your heads that you don't touch my boyfriend." Her eyes flashed, and for only a second, her multi-pupil eye became visible to the humans in front of her. The guys fled instantly. Vriska laughed, stepping over the one she felled and squatting to get on eye-level with Tavros. "Tav?"

Tavros made eye contact, but he didn't see Vriska in front of him. He was dwelling on all they had said.

"Tavros, seriously. Don't make me slap you; you know I will. Do not listen to those stupid humans." Vriska shook him by his shoulders. There was no response. "Shiiiiiiiit."

She ignored all the looks they were getting and left with Tavros.

/Schoolstuck/

Gamzee knocked on the door, waited for an answer, and got none. He sighed and leaned against the door, sliding until he was on the floor and could rest his elbows on his knees.

"Kar, are you okay?"

There was a mumble from inside the closet.

"What?"

"I said, 'leave me alone'."

Gamzee dragged a hand over his face tiredly. He was not in the mood to comfort his moirail nor was he exactly sure how. Karkat had in some way fucked up his matespritship, and Gamzee did not know how. Karkat wasn't telling him anything, either.

"I can't motherfucking help you, Kar, unless you tell me what all happened. Come out so we can fucking get this over with."

"I'm never leaving this damn closet, so go away."

Gamzee let his head drop back, banging against the door. _Sollux might talk, but that would piss Karkat off_. Gamzee sighed. _He calls me motherfucking difficult_.

The Capricorn got up, going over to his computer and logging in to his new messenger: Trillian. It wasn't Trollian, and it sure didn't live up to it, but the human internet left little option. All the trolls had managed to get their Trollian user names, though. Thank Gog for small miracles.

Immediately, he got an IM.

_arachnidsGrip: Gamzee, 8've got a pro8lem!_

_terminallyCapricious: wHaT's AlL tHe MoThErFuCkInG mAtTeR?_

_arachnidsGrip: I 8rought Tavros on a d8 and I left h8m for two seconds and these idi8ts ver8ally bitch-sl8pped him so hard he w8n't answer me at 8ll!_

_terminallyCapricious: wHy Do YoU tHiNk I cAn HeLp?_

_terminallyCapricious: YoU'rE hIs MoThErFuCkInG gIrLfRiEnD._

_arachnidsGrip: Gamzeeeeeeee! I know yo8 care, so help me!_

_terminallyCapricious: wHeRe ArE yOu?_

_arachnidsGrip: I 8rought him to Jade's house since no one is here right now._

_terminallyCapricious: I'Ll Be ThErE iN a FeW mInUtEs._

Gamzee signed out and turned off his screen. He picked up a jacket in case he was out later than he expected. With that, he knocked on the closet door.

"Karkat, Tavros is having a motherfucking breakdown, so I'm going to fucking see what I can do."

The door cracked open, and Gamzee saw one of Karkat's eyes peering at him.

"We'll talk when you get back."

"Motherfucking right."

/Schoolstuck/

Vriska banged on her keyboard when she saw _terminallyCapricious has signed out_ appear under the text on her screen. Tavros was sitting perfectly still behind her, eyes unfocused and unseeing. Vriska knew he wasn't having a complete breakdown since she had taken a peek inside his head, but he would not talk to her, and his thoughts were whirling. The turbulence made it hard for her to control him and try to help. The Scorpio had to eventually give up, forcing her to turn to Gamzee.

She tugged on her hair, annoyed and worried. Her plan was not working out well at all. Tavros wasn't supposed to get hurt; she had intended for both of them to get what they wanted. Her luck was gone, and this left Vriska feeling insecure and bare.

A "few minutes" felt like hours to Vriska as she awaited a knock on the front door. It came right on time. Any longer and Vriska would have broken something.

She raced to the door and flung it open. Gamzee stared blankly at her, betraying none of his growing worry. Vriska stepped to the side and let him in; they walked to her room. Gamzee's eyebrows drew together at the sight of Tavros. He looked to Vriska.

"Can you give us motherfuckers some space?"

Vriska scowled. "I guess." She left Gamzee to whatever he planned on doing.

The Capricorn breathed in deeply before kneeling in front of Tavros. He stared into the Taurus' eyes.

"Tav?" Tavros blinked, but his eyes did not focus on Gamzee. "Tavros, answer me. I know you can all fucking hear me." Silence prevailed, and Gamzee searched his mind for anything that would help. Nothing came to the forefront, and a weight settled on his shoulders. He leaned his forehead against Tavros'. "Tav, please. You know you should never motherfucking listen to that shit. These fuckin' humans can be worse than us motherfucking trolls sometimes. Stop thinking about what they said and fucking focus on me."

Tavros blinked again then a few more times and finally broke into tears. He closed his eyes tightly, shaking with stifled sobs. Gamzee pulled back enough to see the tears streak down Tavros' face; he took his jacket's sleeve and used it to wipe away some of the tears. Tavros talked through his crying.

"T-they called me weak, and, I-I always knew I, uh, was, but, when they a-actually, said it, I couldn't deny it. And they said, you—"

"I?"

Tavros pushed the jacket away and scrubbed his eyes. "They, said you guys w-were, uh, only talking to, me out of pity. I mean, the human way of, uh, pitying."

"Tav, that is motherfucking ridiculous. You're not as strong as the fucking rest of us physically and shit, but you have other things to make up for it."

"I know, but, I can't not think, about what they, uh, said. I wish the Scratch, hadn't given me back my, old legs. People might, um, make fun of me, less." Tavros cleared his face of all water and actually looked Gamzee in the eye. "I don't, want to go out with Vriska anymore," he said lowly.

Gamzee nodded. "I'll see what I can motherfucking do."

"Thanks, Gamzee."

"No problem, Tav. Are you all right now because Karkat was flipping his shit earlier, and I need to motherfucking get back and all be a good moirail."

"Okay," Tavros said, trying to smile. It came out unsure: more a twitch of his lips than a real smile. "Tell Karkat I said, hi."

"Sure." Gamzee stood and ruffled Tavros' hair, lingering a few seconds longer than needed. Tavros leaned in to the touch. "I'll tell Vriska to fucking lay off on the dates. Bye, Tav."

"Bye…"

The Capricorn exited the room and went to find Vriska. She was in the kitchen throwing around some plain human dice; the eight dice always all landed on the side with six dots. When he entered, Vriska glanced up and stopped her dice rolling.

"Is her better?"

"He's motherfucking fantastic."

"That's good. You can be on your way since you've done what you came for." Vriska gave him a smile that could freeze water.

Gamzee, instead of leaving, stomped to the table the Scorpio was sitting at. He slammed his hands on the surface right in front of her, causing the dice to jump around. "Look, Vriska, Tav is my motherfucking matesprit. I'M NOT GOING TO FUCKING LET YOU TREAT HIM LIKE THAT, BITCH." Gamzee clenched his fists and turned his head. He reeled in his anger. Last time he had let go on Earth, he had almost killed a person and gotten in a lot of trouble. This was a somewhat-friend, and Tavros was close by; he couldn't let go of his temper. He grit his teeth and looked back at Vriska. "Sorry, but I mean all what I motherfucking said."

Vriska looked surprised at his changed in behavior but skillfully schooled her expression into nonchalance. "I'll see what I can do." She examined the nails of one hand and dismissed him with a wave from the other. "And I don't know if you should continue to think of him as your matesprit. He is going out with me, after all."

The taller troll's fist crashed into the table, almost toppling it. The dice leapt from the wood and scattered on the floor. Gamzee disappeared without another word.

Vriska went to pick up the dice, freezing when she realized how they had landed: in a row. She didn't touch them, leaving them for Jade or Feferi to collect. She headed back to her room to see how Tavros was.

The dice lay on the floor, two sixes showing in the middle and the others decreasing on either side of the line.


	3. In Which Tavros Learns a Secret

Gamzee walked at a steady pace, knowing when he got home, he would have to talk to Karkat. The tiny part of his brain that housed his insane personality was screaming at him to turn around, run back to Jade's house, and beat Vriska until she couldn't harm Tavros anymore; the much larger and much more rational section lamented that he should have at least taken Tavros with him when he left. Gamzee ran a hand through his hair, looking up at the sky and the slowly sinking sun. This day had turned out different than he expected. He had hoped to get Tavros to go out on a date-but-not and maybe confess how flushed he was for the other troll, but Vriska had shot that plan out of the air. The Capricorn moved his thoughts away from her as thinking about Vriska made his anger surface again. Instead, he focused on Tavros: his cute halting speech, the adorable way he was oblivious to Gamzee's staring, how he always smiled when Gamzee was around. Gamzee smiled himself at that image; Tavros never realized he was watching him that closely. He had it as bad as Tavros – if he could believe what his friends were telling him.

Arriving home after ten minutes, Gamzee headed straight to his room. He figured Karkat would be out of hiding by now and ready to talk. If not, Gamzee was willing to drag him out of the closet and force him to speak. Fortunately, Karkat was sitting on his own bed, fiddling with his laptop and frowning. The Cancer looked up when the other troll walked in.

"Tavros okay?"

"He's fine." Gamzee closed their door and locked it to ensure neither Sollux nor Dave would interrupt them unexpectedly; then, he sat on his bed, waiting for Karkat to start talking.

Karkat put his laptop to the side and shut the lid. He turned to Gamzee but didn't make eye contact. Gamzee counted the seconds that passed until Karkat cracked. "Sollux wouldn't fucking leave me alone about who I was flushing for after you left earlier, so I ran back here and hid in the closet. He got back, and being the smartass he is, he found me. I kept telling him to leave, but he wouldn't, and then he realized I wouldn't tell him because it was him. He—" Karkat crumpled the sheets in his fist. "Sollux… tried to kiss me. I freaked out, though, and I don't fucking know; he said something about being wrong and left." Karkat threw his hands up, frown deepening.

Gamzee wasn't good in the matesprit department, considering what was going on in that quadrant for himself, but he knew Karkat needed some kind of advice. He racked his mind for anything. "Well, maybe you should motherfucking apologize and explain to him why you freaked the fuck out. Why did you, anyway?"

Karkat finally looked at him. "I don't know. He'd just found out my fucking biggest secret, and I guess I was expecting him to be angry or something, but he wasn't. So I flipped my shit when he tried to kiss me because I was surprised. He probably hates me," Karkat mumbled.

"I motherfucking doubt that, Kar."

"If I were him, I would hate me!"

"You already hate yourself, so your opinion doesn't fucking count. Talk to him." Gamzee flopped back on his bed, making pictures out of the dots on the ceiling. His legs kicked back and forth where they hung off the side of the bed. "Sollux isn't a stupid motherfucker. If you tell him what you told me, he'll understand."

Karkat followed Gamzee's example and let himself fall backward. "Whatever. Did you tell Tavros?"

Gamzee shook his head, but seeing as Karkat wouldn't hear it, he answered, "No. Vriska fucked up and let some motherfuckin' assholes talk shit to him. He started crying as soon as I got through to him."

Karkat sat up in a flash. "You didn't do anything to Vriska, did you?"

"Nah. Motherfucking wanted to; almost did. Tavros being in the other room helped control my anger."

"Did you go all... 'high blood' on her?"

"You mean the whispering/yelling thing you said I did when I was murdering everybody? For a second."

Karkat sighed in relief. "At least you're keeping control over your violence now."

A knock on the door ceased their conversation. Gamzee got up, unlocking and opening the door. Dave was standing outside the room looking bored (well, Gamzee assumed he looked bored; sunglasses made expressions hard to decipher).

"Bro ordered pizza; it's in the kitchen."

The Capricorn watched him walk back to the stairs and descend. Dave usually got Sollux to tell them when food was there, so it was a bit strange getting the information straight from the source. Gamzee didn't bother to close the door as they would be leaving. He motioned for Karkat to get up, and they went downstairs.

/Schoolstuck/

Tavros dried his eyes thoroughly, wishing Gamzee hadn't left so soon. The crying, along with the emotional stress, left him feeling drained, and he did not think he could get himself home before nightfall. The Taurus was resigned to the fact that Vriska was the only choice left. Speaking of Vriska…

The troll appeared in the doorway with a relieved smile. Tavros blinked, and the expression was gone. _I had to have imagined that_, he thought wearily. _Vriska doesn't smile unless it's filled with evil intentions._

"Are you okay, Tav?"

"I'm, uh, fine. Can you, bring me home?"

"In a bit," Vriska answered vaguely. She seated herself in her computer chair and rolled over to the other. She seemed to struggle briefly over something she wanted to say before nodding and opening her mouth, "I'm sorry."

"What?" Tavros' mouth dropped open.

"I'm not repeating myself."

"But – why?"

"Why am I sorry?" Tavros shook his head. "Why did I apologize?" An affirmation. "Because I didn't want you to get hurt. I know, it's out of character or whatever," she said, halting Tavros' questions, "but I'm not so huge of a bitch anymore. Considering we're all that's left of our kind, I'd rather not piss any of you off or have any of you die or get hurt; that doesn't mean I won't torment you, though."

Tavros rubbed his temples. "You're saying you, uh, didn't let those guys do that on purpose, or make them do it?"

"Why would I bother manipulating stupid humans? Besides, did you not see me punch that piece of shit who thought he was all badass picking on someone who couldn't fight back? What an idiot."

"Vriska, I'm confused."

The Scorpio scowled. "What _now_?"

"Do you actually, uh, care about me?"

"What could have possibly given you that idea?" she replied sarcastically.

Tavros grinned sheepishly. "I mean, do you, have flushed feelings, or…?"

Vriska redirected her gaze to a spot over Tavros' right shoulder. "It's not like that. I was trying to make someone jealous. You happened to be the perfect target; I mean, you gave me exactly what I needed to manipulate you."

This made Tavros' confusion mount. Who in the world would Vriska need to make jealous? Vriska never liked anyone. Tavros also questioned why she was telling him this. It was way off from Vriska's regular demeanor, and it was starting to freak him out.

"You're not an, impostor or something, are you?"

Vriska spun around in the chair, resting her chin on her palm. "I could punch you or something if you want to find out."

"How would that, uh, prove you're you?"

"It wouldn't, but it would be pretty fun." Vriska smirked. She put her feet flat on the floor, stopping her spinning. "Do you want me to take you home now?"

Tavros shook his head. "I have another question." Vriska waved for him to continue. "You said you're, uh, using me to make someone jealous, but, why me? Other than being, easy to manipulate."

Vriska was quiet for a while. The only sound was the _tick tock_ of the clock hanging on the wall. Tavros was going to retract his question when Vriska met his eyes.

"I… might have pale leanings. For you," she added for clarification.

This sent Tavros' mind whirling again, but for a much different reason than last time. Vriska wanted to be moirails? After all the shit she had done to him, after the failed matespritship-thing they had sort of tried? Tavros stared at Vriska uncertainly; he knew he didn't hate her (a big character flaw, him not being able to hate people). But did that mean he wanted to try a moiraillegience with her? It couldn't hurt – more than being around Vriska normally did, anyway. Tavros analyzed his feelings: he wasn't completely averse to it, especially since Vriska had become less mean. _Actually_, he thought, _I think I've always known we would work out better as moirails than any other quadrant._

"Uh, I think, I kind of feel the same. As long as you, don't kiss me anymore, I'll pretend to be your, um, boyfriend." Vriska genuinely smiled, a sight Tavros found pleasing. "But, if we're going to be moirails, you have to, tell me stuff. Like, who are you trying to make jealous?"

Vriska grimaced. "Can I tell you tomorrow?"

The Taurus sighed, knowing this relationship wouldn't be easy. "Sure. I'm ready to, uh, go home, by the way."

/Schoolstuck/

The next day of school was completely opposite from the day before. No one touched any of Tavros' possessions (or desks). Vriska pushed him to his first class, and people looked too frightened of her to pay attention to Tavros. For once, he felt like he fit in. Well, if fitting in constituted being afraid of his moirail. Gamzee, Karkat, and Terezi were already sitting when he and Vriska arrived, and all three glared. Vriska ignored them and leaned down to tell Tavros goodbye before leaving for her own class.

Tavros went to his desk and got out his supplies, knowing he would be able to focus better today. He felt Terezi poke him in the back with her walking stick and swiveled around.

"Are you still going along with her?" she whispered.

"Yeah, uh, sort of." Tavros glanced to the side to make sure Gamzee wasn't listening in. "I'll, explain later."

"You better, or you'll be getting a good whack from this." She held her cane up to his eyes so he had to cross them to see it. Tavros nodded hastily. "Good."

Terezi went back to doodling a picture of her and Dave, glasses askew and shirt designs hanging in the air to their sides. Tavros grinned at her horrible artwork and turned back to the front of the room. From the corner of his eye, he caught Gamzee peering at him concernedly.

The Taurus faced him. "Gamzee?"

"Were you all fucking right when I left last night, Tav?"

"I was, uh, fine. Thanks again."

"There's no need to motherfucking thank me. I was just doing what any good mate—" Gamzee closed his mouth so fast, his teeth clicked together. Tavros' eyes widened. _Was he about to say what I think he was about to say?_ "Uh, what any good motherfucking friend would." Behind Tavros' back, Terezi held up her paper which now read "nice job", with obvious sarcasm.

Disappointment flashed through the smaller troll. He knew he had heard correctly: Gamzee had started saying "matesprit". Did he cut himself off because he didn't know of Tavros' feelings and did not want to chance it, or did he cut off because he discerned that his feelings were not of that variety? Those questions bogged down Tavros, and his mood dropped. He went back to focusing on the blank board in front of him. Gamzee shot a distressed look at Terezi, but the female troll shrugged and waved her paper-turned-sign; "nice job" was scratched out and replaced by "you fucked up".

/Schoolstuck/

First and second period streamed by in a haze of knowledge Tavros did not bother to pick up. On his way out the door, Terezi intercepted him. She caught the handles of his wheelchair, held up a hand to Aradia, and pushed him toward his third period.

"You are going to talk, Tav. I know Vriska will monopolize you at lunch, so I put it upon myself to steal your time between classes," Terezi said cheerfully, purposefully running over people's feet and not bothering to apologize. She _was_ blind, after all.

"Terezi, I'm, uh, not sure how to explain."

"How about you tell me why you are STILL 'going out' with Vriska?"

Tavros entwined his fingers and twisted them nervously. "We're not really, going out. Vriska is using me to, um, make someone else jealous. She hasn't, told me who yet."

"_Using_ you? Tav, that's even worse! And why would Vriska, of all trolls, tell you anything?"

"Well, she's – we, are kind of, uh…" Tavros mumbled the last word.

Terezi jerked the wheelchair and bent so she was on Tavros' level. "What was that, Tav? You two are what?"

"Moirails…"

Terezi let go of his wheelchair all together this time, and he rolled a few inches. The Taurus was suddenly assaulted by the Libra's cane; a few students stopped to watch. He shielded his head with his hands, fending off the painful blows. Terezi finally stopped and circled in front of him.

"Is she controlling you?"

"No! Terezi, I know it's, uh, farfetched, but I really think Vriska is, my moirail." He received another whack for that statement. "I made an agreement, with her. We're not, uh, dating anymore; not really. Vriska isn't all, that bad when you, uh, get to know her."

The blind troll raised an eyebrow. "This is the bitch that threw you off a cliff, the reason you are paralyzed, and you are saying you want a pale relationship with her?"

"No one else would, have one with her, and I've, uh, been looking for a, moirail. Vriska might be, mean to me, but she still listens. It's her own way of, uh, being a moirail."

Terezi shook her head, hitting Tavros one last time. "I trust your judgment on most things, Tav, but this is not one of them. You should break off that relationship before you get hurt."

"I won't," Tavros said stubbornly, going around Terezi. She jogged to catch up with him, getting in his way a second time. Tavros rolled his eyes. "I need to get to, uh, class, Terezi."

She stepped to the side. "You haven't won this argument, Tavros; I am a trained legislacerator, and I will convince you to stop this fling with Vriska."

Tavros ignored her and hurried so he would get to class on time.

/Schoolstuck/

Terezi fumed as she stomped to her class. Kids jumped out of her way; the ones that didn't got hit by her walking stick. Her mind was churning with the hatred she felt toward Vriska. She hardly noticed when Dave appeared by her side.

"Hey, cool kid," she said absent-mindedly. "You seem to show up only when I'm in a bad mood."

Dave stuck his hands in his pockets. "Isn't that what being a moirail or whatever shit is about?"

"In a manner of speaking."

"What did Vriska do?"

"What she does best: piss me off."

They got to their class and took their seats in the very back. No one bothered them back there, and the teacher never called on them. It was the perfect place to go unnoticed when you wanted to pass notes or talk.

"By the way," Terezi said, changing the subject, "did you tell your matesprit how you feel?"

"I don't have a damn matesprit; I'm not a troll."

"I can smell that, but you still have someone special, and for us, that is called a matesprit. Stop avoiding the question."

"No."

Terezi rapped his knee with her cane. "You need to say it!"

"I'm not going to fuck up a friendship for stupid girly feelings I shouldn't have."

"That is the worst excuse, Dave, and we both know it."

"Whatever," he muttered, shrugging. Terezi knew from experience that she wouldn't be changing his mind any time soon, so she gave up and pretended to focus on the teacher while devising ways to maim Vriska.

/Schoolstuck/

John practically skipped through the halls on the way to his third period, the hood of his god tier outfit trailing behind him wildly. (His dad had washed it last night! Why would he wear it again if it wasn't washed? Gosh.) Today was a great day, and he couldn't wait to get to art. A few kids greeted him as he passed them; John waved back, smiling widely. He was well-liked in school. Maybe not to the same extent as Feferi and Eridan, but no one bothered him for his weird choice in clothes or other quirks.

He stumbled as he entered the art room, surprised by the presence in the room.

"Dave?"

The other boy was sitting with Tavros at the table they had used yesterday. Tavros looked like he felt very awkward near Dave, and Dave was straight-faced as per usual. The blond looked up at John as he walked over.

"What are you doing here?" John echoed the question Nepeta had asked him the day before.

"They wouldn't let me make one damn sword, so I switched out."

"To art? Why? No, wait, let me guess: to be ironic."

"Why else? Cool kids don't do art unless it's in an ironic way."

John took the seat across from him and next to Tavros. "Of course. They kicked you out, didn't they?" He giggled at Dave's frown.

"Uh, can they do that?" Tavros interjected.

John nodded. "In extreme circumstances that don't warrant suspension or expulsion. Which I'm surprised they didn't do," he directed at Dave. "Shouldn't they have at least suspended you? You _were _trying to make a deadly weapon."

Dave shrugged, and John breathed out heavily. The blonde was good at getting out of bad situations like that. He never understood it.

"Dave! Are you cutting class, nya?"

John observed Nepeta pouncing on Dave and hassling him, Equius showing up to scold the girl; Tavros didn't take part in the craziness. Class was pretty much a loud mess for their table that day.

/Schoolstuck/

Tavros gladly left third period. He never felt entirely comfortable around Dave since the whole failed trolling incident. Besides, Dave hardly talked to him when they were around each other, so they were left in silence until someone showed up. It was annoying, actually.

Tavros let go of those thoughts and searched the hall. Vriska was nowhere to be seen, even though Tavros had expected her to come find him. It was strange, but Tavros brushed it aside and headed to the library; he had to return the book of fairy tales he had found one day in the beginning of the year when he was hiding from some kids. He'd renewed it at least three times, and he would have again if he thought they would let him.

Once in the library, he dropped off the book and went to the section he'd found it in to see if there were more like it. As Tavros went by an aisle, he looked down it: Kanaya was sitting on the ground with a book open on her lap, leaning back against the bookshelf. Tavros decided to go say hi, so he backed up.

"Hey, Kanaya," he said softly, rolling over to her.

Kanaya's head whipped up, her eyes wide until she saw who had addressed her. Her gaze softened, and she smiled. "Hello, Tavros. How are you?"

He pulled up a foot shy of her position, noticing she had company already. A head of blonde hair rested on Kanaya's shoulder, while the rest of the person was curled up against the troll's side.

"I'm, uh, fine. How long have you two, been in here?"

Kanaya eyes rolled up to stare at the ceiling. "We were sent to get books halfway through third period. The teacher said we could stay if we wanted to. I found a book to read, and Rose fell asleep reading over my shoulder."

"Oh, that's cool, I guess. I was trying to, uh, find more books on, human fairy tales."

"They would be in the fantasy section, I believe. It is the last aisle."

"Thanks, Kanaya."

"You're welcome, Tav."

Tavros left the two girls to their reading/sleeping and followed Kanaya's direction. She was right about the stories being in the fantasy section. The Taurus scanned the titles on the shelves he could reach, but nothing stood out. He gave a frustrated sigh and rolled back an inch or two to see the books above him. Most of them were uninteresting also; as Tavros was about to give up, a medium-sized, purple-covered book caught his eye. The writing on the spine was golden and proclaimed that the book contained a vast collection of tales. The poor, wheelchair-bound troll almost cried at the unfairness of the situation: the book was about two feet above him, and he definitely would not be able to reach it without help. Tavros debated over asking the librarians, then threw that choice out because they didn't like him (he heard them grumble about his wheelchair taking up too much space in the cluttered library). He was on the brink of giving up and coming back with someone – probably Vriska – to get it for him, when an arm reached over his head and plucked the book from its shelf.

"Here you go, Tav."

Tavros tentatively took the book from Gamzee after facing him, fixing his eyes with the other troll's. Gamzee's lips twitched downward at Tavros' lack of response.

"Are you all motherfucking okay?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm, uh, fine," Tavros stuttered out, holding the book to his chest like a shield, as if it would protect him from any sort of rejection he might be about to receive. "Did you, um, need something, Gamzee?"

"What?" Gamzee looked confused for a second, scratching his cheek. "Oh, yeah. I needed to fucking tell you some important shit, Tav."

"Isn't that an, oxymoron?"

"A what?"

"Um, two words that, mean the opposite of each other," Tavros explained.

"Oh, I guess it was, then." Tavros mentally patted himself on the shoulder at his perfect scheme for getting Gamzee off topic. Sadly, it didn't last long. "I know you're trying to motherfucking distract me, Tav, but this is fucking important, so I'm not gonna let you fucking do that." Gamzee stalked forward, Tavros matching his pace going backward. The wall cruelly held as Tavros' wheelchair bumped against it, as walls consistently do. Gamzee crouched to Tavros' level, keeping their eyes locked. The Taurus shivered as Gamzee leaned closer, mesmerized by the purple hue his irises held.

"Gamzee, uh – what did you, have to, um, tell me?" Tavros whispered shakily.

"I don't remember," he said right before kissing Tavros.

/Schoolstuck/

_Author's Notes:_

_Cliffhanger!_

"What is this - I don't even -"

_You guys hate me now, don't you? :_

_Also, thanks to those who reviewed! The anon, Evil Italy, and azamichaaaan, all lovely reivews that made me happy~ Glad you guys are enjoying it. Also, I love making people enjoy reading things they usually don't; it makes me feel like I accomplished my mission. :) And another big thanks to those who story alerted and favorited! I love you guys so much ;_;  
><em>


	4. In Which There are Confessions

Tavros squeaked when Gamzee's lips touched his; he sat there, frozen, eyes wide and staring into Gamzee's. They stayed like that for a few seconds – or maybe hours, or days, or even forever – neither stopping nor deepening the kiss.

Eternity was very short-lived, though, and Gamzee pulled back. Tavros was stock-still, but a dark blush spread over his face, creeping down his neck and toward his ears. Gamzee waved a hand in front of the stunned troll's face.

"Tav? …Tavros?" Gamzee touched his shoulder, and Tavros jumped. He focused on Gamzee again. "Tavro –"

Tavros grabbed the collar of Gamzee's shirt and yanked him forward so they were kissing once more. The Capricorn smiled into it and slipped a hand around Tavros' head, playing with his hair; the motion relaxed the wheelchair-bound troll, and he closed his eyes.

This kiss lasted longer but was no deeper than the first. It ended when Tavros' eyes snapped open and he realized what he had done. He let go of Gamzee's shirt and shoved him away gently.

"Um, I, uh, I-I'm sorry. I, uh, d-didn't mean to, do that. Um, s-spur of the moment," Tavros rambled, twisting his fingers together. "I, uh, I'll go now. Bye, G-Gamzee." He had hardly moved his hands to the wheels before Gamzee struck.

The indigo blood caught Tavros' wrists, effectively keeping him from moving at all. Tavros blinked up at him and opened his mouth, but Gamzee shot him a look that said "be quiet". He placed the smaller troll's hands on the armrests of the wheelchair.

"Keep 'em there, Tav; I don't want you going any fucking where until I'm done talking." Tavros nodded slowly. "Good. So… uh, I don't really know where to motherfucking begin." Gamzee dropped so he was sitting cross-legged at Tavros' feet. He tapped his chin. "I guess it started when we met up in the game and shit; you were motherfucking adorable, and you were determined even when you were fucking helpless. My mind was all fogged up with that sopor slime, though, and then I went all insane and fucking killed everyone I saw. Last thing I remember before waking up here was motherfucking wondering if you were all right. And after we got all settled here, it fucking grew. I didn't have anything holding me back from seeing motherfucking everything, especially you. You're what I'd call a miracle now, Tav: one damn miracle after another. I hate when those fucking idiots pick on you, but I love being there to help you, to motherfucking see your smile when I get whatever it is they took back. You make me smile, and I'm pretty damn flushed for you."

Throughout Gamzee's monologue, Tavros had sat still and quiet; now, he heaved himself from his wheelchair and threw himself at Gamzee, who caught him surprisingly easily. Gamzee rearranged Tavros so he was straddling the highblood. The smaller troll started crying, his face pressed against Gamzee's shoulder.

"G-Gamzee, I-I," Tavros sobbed out, voice muffled. Gamzee ran a hand through Tavros' hair and smoothed the other down his back. The calming gestures helped little; Tavros continued to bawl and attempt to speak through the tears. "I-I've liked you since, uh, f-forever. It's always, been e-easy to talk, uh, to you. I've b-been too, scared to, s-say anything, but you mean s-so much, to me. I h-hate when you're, uh, not around, or u-unhappy. I'm so f-flushed for, um, you." The lowblood pulled back to look into Gamzee's eyes as he said the last sentence. His eyes were bright from the tears, and his cheeks were soaked – as was Gamzee's shirt. Tavros wiped his face with the back of his hand. "I-I'm always crying, uh, in front of, you."

Gamzee chuckled. "It's fine, Tav. You can motherfucking cry in front of me whenever you want; I'll be there to comfort you. We are fucking matesprits, you know."

He brought Tavros' face close to his so their noses were touching. He smiled, eyes crossing to see Tavros. The other troll's did the same. They broke out in quiet laughter at each other's expressions.

"I'm, uh, really happy," Tavros sighed after the laughter had died down. Gamzee nodded, his nose brushing against Tavros'. "But, uh, why did you, decide to tell me now?"

"Vriska."

"What? Why?"

"Well…"

/Schoolstuck/ _Before third period was completely over!_

Gamzee walked swiftly through the empty hall, backpack slung over one shoulder. He had gotten out of third period early because he had said he needed to use the bathroom. His teacher was gullible with a capital G: she never asked why he was taking his stuff. It worked out nicely since Gamzee couldn't take another second of being surrounded by humans who were not Tavros. After his fuck up in first period, he had been thinking about the other troll and debating over whether to find him and explain or not.

"Hey, Gam-zee," Vriska's voice rang out. She stood from where she had been leaning against the wall and strolled toward him, disregarding his dangerous expression. "Someone told me you royally screwed up with Tavros."

"What do you motherfucking want?"

"Oh, testy!" She slung an arm around his shoulders, dragging him along with her. "I wanted to offer a little advice to you! Can't I be friendly without your suspicion?"

"No."

Vriska sighed dramatically. "It's to be expected, but I think you'll reaaally want to hear this."

Gamzee shrugged her arm off. "Unless you're gonna fucking break up with Tav, I don't give a shit."

"This is so much better than that, Gamzee!" She tilted her head only slightly to stare mischievously into his eyes. "Look, I'm not actually going out with Tavros; I was just blackmailing him. Will you listen now?"

"Fine. Just get to the motherfucking point." He glowered at her.

"Okay then, here's the deal: Tavros and I are moirails, and I am using him to make someone I like jealous. You might be wondering why I'm telling you this. Well, I'm telling you because Tavros is my moirail, and he is miserable. I might act like I don't give a shit and half the time, I don't, but this is different. Now, what I want you to do is go confess to him, so he will be less miserable."

Gamzee blankly stared at her. "You expect me to believe a motherfucking word of that shit?"

"It is pretty unbelievable," Vriska said, smirking, "but it is all true. As true as Tavros being insanely flushed for you. You can ask him all about this once you _go and confess_."

"I'm not fucking stupid, Vriska. I know you have something else planned."

Vriska pressed her hand to her chest, smirk never leaving. "I'm wounded; but yes, I do have other plans that need you to make Tavros happy to move along. It's win-win, Gamz. Come on. I promise you won't be disappointed."

Gamzee thought it over: he had multiple confirmations of Tavros' feelings, so he didn't think Vriska was lying about that, but what if Tavros wasn't ready to face his feelings? And what about this whole moirail business. Sure, he could ask Tav… Which meant he might as well go along with Vriska's plan, sort of?

"I'll see."

Vriska clapped her hands together. The bell rang, and the hall filled with students in less than five seconds.

"You won't be disappointed," Vriska repeated. Gamzee walked away from her, missing the last part of her statement, as well as her snicker: "And neither will I."

/Schoolstuck/ _Back to the present!_

"We are, uh, moirails; she, um, confessed to me yesterday, after you left. She is also, trying to make someone, jealous. She hasn't, told me, uh, who, though."

"Why did you fucking accept her feelings, Tav? She makes your life harder than it needs to be, damn it. But I am glad I motherfucking listened to her about you, even if she is a bitch." He stroked his thumb over Tavros' lips.

The smaller troll 'eep'-ed and blushed again. "U-um, I already told, uh, Terezi that I was going to, give Vriska a chance. She isn't, uh, t-that bad all the time." He looked down. "I'm glad you listened, too," he whispered.

They sat in comfortable silence until the bell shocked them out of their little world. Gamzee glanced around dazedly, and Tavros made to climb back into his wheelchair. Reacting automatically, the highblood slipped an arm behind Tavros' back and under his knees, standing with almost no effort.

"Gamzee –!" Tavros clung to his matesprit's neck, not used to being so high off the ground. "I could have, uh, done it by myself."

"Why would I let you? We're matesprits; we're supposed to fucking help each other."

"I don't, uh, see how I could, be much help to you," Tavros said lowly.

_You don't know how motherfucking much you help me, Tav_, Gamzee thought sadly, depositing Tavros in his wheelchair. "You don't need to see it because I can see it just fucking fine," he said aloud. Tavros ducked his head, dark orange spreading to his ears. "Come on; let's get to cla—"

"Highblood!" Equius skidded around the corner of the bookshelf, catching sight of them and stopping. Nepeta peeked over his shoulder, arms wrapped securely around her moirail's neck. She looked extremely worried, and Equius didn't look much better. "The lowblood…!"

Nepeta took over, slipping from Equius' back and running over to Gamzee. "Karkitty! These three big humans! You need to help him!" she said frantically, making little to no sense.

Gamzee rested a hand on her shoulder. He looked to Equius.

"The lowblood is in a fight, and he is not fairing very well. I would have assisted him, but my strength is too great; it would have put unwanted attention on us."

"Go find Sollux," he said to Nepeta and gave her a little push when all she did was stare at him.

Nepeta glanced at Equius, who nodded, then took off to find the Gemini. Gamzee stood for a second, a thoughtful look on his face.

"Gamzee?" Tavros tugged on his matesprit's sleeve. "Shouldn't we be going?"

"Ah, yeah. I don't know how well Karkat can motherfucking fight. He never seemed very physical…" Gamzee pushed Tavros out of the aisle with Equius following. He navigated the halls using Equius' guidance, and they made it right as the fight was turning into a _fight_.

/Schoolstuck/

"Sollux."

…

"Sollux! Stop walking and fucking listen to me, damn it!"

Sollux stopped abruptly and whipped around. "_What_ do you want, Kk?"

Karkat met his glare head on. "I want you to stopping being an _ass_ and listen to me; I'm trying to apologize."

"What the fuck are you thorry for?"

Karkat shifted uneasily and mumbled.

"I'm leaving. The bell ith going to ring thoon." Sollux walked off, not looking back.

The Cancer watched him leave forlornly. His shoulders slumped. Karkat sighed, unaware of the danger lurking behind him.

"Aw, look at the little pansy, all sad because he got rejected," a voice echoed in the hall. Karkat tensed as there was movement in his peripheral vision. A hand clamped onto his shoulder, and the guy who had harassed Tavros leaned down to sneer right in Karkat's face. "I'm not surprised; I find you just as repulsive."

"Fuck off."

"Oh, you have more fight than that cripple you hang around with. You're all so weird, staying in that big group you've been in since you got here. What the fuck is up with that? Are you guys so sad you can't make any new friends?"

"Look, fuckass, we stay in that group so we don't have to deal with shitbrains like you. Go the fuck away," Karkat spat.

The guy signaled with his free hand, and his two friends came up to hold Karkat's arms. The small troll struggled fruitlessly as the leader raised his fist.

"Karkitty!"

Nepeta bowled over the teen before he could attack. She hissed at him (quite convincingly) from her spot on his back.

"You leave him alone, you big idiot."

"Nepeta, don't fight. It is unbecoming." Equius also showed up, lifting Nepeta off the guy. The Leo strained to hit the leader, arms and legs flailing.

"They're hurting Karkitty!"

"Stop calling me that!" Karkat yelled, trying to free himself again.

The 'big idiot' got back to his feet and laughed. "See? You even help each other fight. But I guess you're pretty bad off since you need a girl's help." He and his cronies laughed, drowning out the bell.

Nepeta bit Equius, but he held on. "Let us go find the highblood," he said.

"We can't let Gamzee fight; he'll go crazy again," Nepeta argued.

"Go ahead and bring him. He can't be much of a challenge," the leader taunted.

Karkat made a motion with his head for Equius to leave, and the Sagittarius carried Nepeta off to find Gamzee.

"Ha, like that skinny piece of shit can do anything."

Karkat kicked out and hit the human in the back of the knee. He staggered. Once he righted himself, he turned and punched Karkat in the stomach. The Cancer coughed, blood flecking the floor, and gasped for breath. For the first time, he was glad for his mutant blood color. They were always so careful not to bleed in front of other humans because that was one thing that wasn't camouflaged. At least, since it was Karkat, no one would notice.

"Hmph. You're actually no fun at all, are you?"

"You little nooksuckers," Karkat rasped, getting a 'what the fuck' look for his insult. "My moirail could kick your asses so hard you'd fly for the rest of your shitty lives. I suggest you let me the fuck go and run while you can."

Kids started to filter into the hall from the various cafeteria doors, and, intrigued by the impending fight, they didn't go any farther. Among the crowd were some of the other trolls, and they pushed their way to the front when they heard Karkat speak. Vriska, Eridan, Feferi, and Aradia emerged to see what was going on.

"What the fuck is a moirail? Some kind of code word for 'lover'? I bet that's why that other guy left! Well, other than you being gay." He and his friends roared with laughter. A few people in the crowd joined in.

Eridan stepped forward, hand slipping into his pocket. Feferi saw this and grabbed his arm.

"Eridan, you said you wouldn't glubbing use that anymore."

He shook her off. "I won't unless I need to." He took a few more steps. "Hey, douchebags."

Karkat craned his neck to see Eridan. "Stay out of this."

"Yeah, right, Kar, because you've got this situation totally under control." Eridan redirected his attention to the humans holding Karkat. "You should be lettin' him go."

"Oh, it's mister 'king of the school'. Sorry, but he's a little tied up," the one of the left said, smirking. He and his fellow dragged Karkat so he was facing everyone.

The Aquarius clenched his hand around what was in his pocket. "You should _really_ let him go."

"Don't think we will," the other said airily. He shook Karkat's arm a little.

Eridan pulled out his perfectly white wand, pointing it threateningly at the thugs. Quite a few kids snickered, and the bullies were hardly frightened. Karkat let his head fall in shame. Feferi stomped her foot, annoyed.

"I glubbing told you not to use that stupid wand," she fumed.

The leader covered his mouth, doubling over in mirth. "Maybe you s-should listen to your girlfriend."

Vriska strode forth to end these shenanigans. She put a hand on Eridan's, telling him silently to let her handle it. He lowered the wand but did not back up. Vriska rolled her shoulders and cracked her knuckles. The three stopped laughing and shuffled back warily.

"You assholes remember me, right?" Her grin revealed sharp canines that were not previously there – well, not to humans. "If you don't want to be humiliated a second time, run. I'll give you 'til the count of three: one." She held up a finger. They stood their ground, the two followers tightening their hold on Karkat. "Twooo." Another finger went up, and there was still no movement. "You must want to piss me off. Three!" Vriska charged toward the leader, smiling maniacally.

The late bell reverberated through the school at the same moment Vriska's foot made contact with his face. She spun with the momentum of her kick and dropped low to the floor. The teen held his nose in obvious pain, falling backward. His friends scurried away, still manhandling Karkat who was fighting back again.

Vriska, lightning-quick, snatched the boy's ankle and tugged: he slid across the floor, now flat on his back. She climbed on top of him, sat on his chest, removed his hand, and punched him. Students started egging them on immediately.

"HEY." The dark voice cut through the noise in the hall like a knife through butter: all shouting, clapping, stomping, and fighting ceased. Vriska's arm halted in the air. Almost as one, everyone looked to the end of the hall, where Tavros, Equius, and Gamzee were. Tavros' hands were clenched on the armrests of his wheelchair; Equius was looking worriedly around for Nepeta; and Gamzee had his eyes fixed on the guys holding Karkat. "Put him down. MOTHERFUCKING NOW." They dropped Karkat without a fuss, pressing themselves against the wall.

Karkat scrambled to his feet, running over to the three trolls. The leader threw Vriska off himself, going after the Cancer. Vriska cursed, getting up to follow the guy.

A few things happened in the next second: Karkat reached Gamzee, and the highblood pushed Karkat out of the way to get at the thug; Nepeta came out of nowhere and tackled Vriska out of the way; the teacher's desk from the nearest classroom went hurdling over the girls, hitting the leader straight-on.

The sound of the desk banging against the floor prevented them from hearing the _crack_ of broken bones. Aradia and Feferi ran to check on Nepeta and Vriska. Eridan went over to the desk and kicked it off the human. He was unconscious.

Gasps echoed from the crowd, which had retreated more into the cafeteria when Gamzee, Tavros, and Equius had shown up. Quite a few snapped pictures with their cellphones, and the rest started texting their friends.

Gamzee stared down at the guy emotionlessly. Karkat stepped in front of him.

"Gamzee, I'm fine. Snap out of it." He waved his hands around. The Capricorn turned his gaze to him, eyes dark with insanity. "Shit. Shit shit shit shit shit shit shit. This isn't cool; stop it!"

"Karkat, uh, could you move?" Karkat switched his wide eyes to Tavros. The handicapped troll rolled more toward Gamzee, urging Karkat to step to the side. He also pointed to the classroom the desk had come out of. "I think Sollux, wants to talk to you."

The Cancer gulped and left, but not before giving Tavros a hard look. Tavros situated himself in Karkat's vacated spot, making sure Gamzee wouldn't attack the already hurt boy. Equius went over to the group of girls and Eridan, while Sollux and Karkat disappeared into the classroom.

Tavros reached up as far as he could and wound his hands into Gamzee's shirt. The highblood resisted Tavros' insistent yanking at first, but then gave in. Flashes went off behind them as Gamzee let himself be pulled. Equius and Eridan started herding the students back into the cafeteria.

"Gamzee." The Taurus shivered as blank eyes settled on him. "Um, Gamzee? I know you're not, completely gone yet. Look at me – please. I want to, uh, help you like you, helped me. Don't – don't hurt anyone again." Gamzee pressed his right hand to his forehead, the left latching on to Tavros' wrist. Tavros winced at the tight grip. "We only, just became matesprits; I-I haven't been so, uh, happy since Equius gave me metal legs. But, this was so much, um, better. Please, Gamzee…"

Silence reigned in the hall. The rest of the trolls sans Karkat and Sollux, watched hopefully. After long minutes of Gamzee nor moving or talking, he brought his hand to Tavros' face and loosened his hold.

"I'm sorry, Tav. I almost motherfucking ruined the best thing in my life."

Tavros kissed Gamzee, happiness practically pouring off him. "It's okay; it's fine now. Just… don't do that again?"

"I'll try."

Nepeta and Feferi 'aww'-ed at the scene. Aradia smiled, and Vriska smirked. Her plan was turning out nicely.

"Can we get this pity fest moving before a teacher shows up?" Karkat interrupted the moment with his usual tact, though this time he had a blush on his face.

"Where are all the teachers? Shouldn't they have come looking when most of the students didn't turn up for fourth period?" Nepeta voiced the question on all of their minds.

"You can thank us for that."

Rose and Kanaya walked down the hall side-by-side. Rose was the one who had spoken, and she looked satisfied.

"We heard Equius and Nepeta come into the library and listened in on the conversation. We acquired the assistance of John, Dave, and Jade to occupy the teachers until everyone was safely back in class," Kanaya explained.

"That is one instance I appreciate eavesdropping," Aradia said. "We should get to class, though."

"What are we, um, going to do about him?" Tavros indicated the still knocked out guy. The other two had run off hardly a second after letting Karkat go and seeing the desk flying through the air.

"He isn't dead… is he?" Nepeta asked, poking the boy. Equius examined him.

"He seems to have broken his spine. He will not die, but we should move him to the nurse's office immediately."

Sollux went over and picked the teen up with his psionics. "I'll do it thince it wath my fault." Karkat trotted after him.

The rest of the trolls (and Rose) milled around awkwardly for a minute until Feferi brought up the second question on their minds.

"So, Tavros, what happened to you and Vriska?"

/Schoolstuck/

_Author's Notes:_

_Yay, another chapter! Thanks to H3H3H3, Zamp Night , and the anon (it's fine, as long as you say it's you so I don't get confused :) ) for reviewing, and thanks to those who story alerted/favorited. You guys rock! (Also, almost 1,000 hits on this story~)_

_I have a question, too: I've seen Tumblrs where people answer questions from their HS AUs, and I wondered if anyone would be interested in me doing that? Of course, questions would be limited to things that have already happened/the past/relationships/feelings. No spoilers! You would be getting answers from my perspective of the characters in my story; plus, you would get a little drawing! If you want a sample of my drawings (and the Tumblr I will use for questions), here it is: justhomestuck. tumblr. com Without the spaces, as usual. My dA is also on my profile, so yeah...  
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_Keep being awesome, and I'll keep writing ;) Actually, I'll write whether you guys are awesome or not XD Hope you're enjoying~  
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_MusicofFire_

_P.S. Almost the whole time I was writing this chapter, I was listening to "Say" by John Mayer. For some reason, it just made sense for this chapter.  
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	5. In Which More Feelings Come to Light

_Author's Notes:_

_Apparently, "extra long" means a few pages more than usual. I tried to write a lot more, but my brain is too overwhelmed with upcoming crap, like college. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It has so much stuff happening in it :x (More notes at the bottom)_

/Schoolstuck/

"Sollux? Sollux! Soolluuuux!" Nepeta called, sprinting down the halls of the school. She cupped her hands around her mouth to project her voice, "Sollux! Where are you!"

"Young lady, stop that yelling this instant," a teacher reprimanded, stepping out of her classroom. "That is no way to act in a school."

Nepeta skidded to a halt before the teacher. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but I'm looking for my friend." She hopped from foot to foot, looking down the hall past the teacher. "It's quite impurrtant. I mean, important."

"That is no excuse. Wait here; I need to find my detention slips." The teacher walked back into her room. Nepeta peeked around the doorframe, watching her rummage through her desk drawers. Without regret, she started running again. The teacher heard her and yelled for her to come back and threatened a more severe punishment. Nepeta glanced back but kept going. Karkitty was much more impurrtant than her getting suspended!

She rounded the corner leading to the gym and sighed in relief as she spotted Sollux.

"Sollux!" He turned to her, eyes narrowed. Nepeta slowed to a jog until she was a few feet from him, then came to stop. She breathed in deeply. "Karkitty''tthinkit'sgoingtoturnoutwellifhedoes!" she spewed out, eyes wide and pleading.

"All I caught in that wath thomething about Kk, tho I don't care, Nepeta." He pulled open the door to the walkway connected to the gym.

Nepeta bit her lip, clenching her fists. "But –" Sollux halted but didn't look back at her. "You like Karkitty, don't you? If you like someone, you help them even if you're mad! So – so if you like him, go save him!" She pointed in the direction of the fight and stomped her foot. Sollux let the door close and faced her.

"Why are you telling me to help him when you like him? It would be more conduthive for you if you were the one to thave him."

Nepeta blushed. "Equius won't let me fight… And Karkitty likes you. I want him to be happy, and if he's happy with you, then…" She made a sweeping gesture with her arm.

The Gemini stared at her critically for a moment. "You don't jutht like him." With those words, he left through the door he had just let close.

"Wh— Sollux! Come back!" She quickly followed him, taking two steps for every one of his. "Where are you going!"

"I'm going around the outthide. I'll climb in a window or thomething."

"Oh."

They made short work of the distance around the school to a classroom near the aforementioned fight. On their way, they encountered the four kids plus Kanaya; Rose leaned out the window when they passed, getting their attention.

"What are you two doing walking around outside?" she asked amusedly. John and Jade crowded the space next to her to wave hello.

"Kk apparently got in a fight. I have to go help him," Sollux explained, slipping his hands into his pockets. Beside him, Nepeta rocked back and forth, eyes darting between Rose and the way she and Sollux were supposed to be heading. She became increasingly antsy when the late bell reverberated through the school. Rose turned to address something going on in the classroom.

"Oh, yes, we heard you and Equius in the library," Kanaya said to Nepeta. She took up the spot vacated by Jade as she went back to whatever she had been doing. "We decided to take up the task of creating a distraction for the teachers."

Sollux quirked a brow. "What does that entail?"

John leaned farther out the window and flailed his arms. "Some windy magic and a sword!"

"Sollux, time is ticking, and Karkitty isn't being saved!" The Leo tugged on his arm impatiently. "He could be dead!"

"I doubt he'th dead."

John disappeared back inside so only Rose, who had turned back to them, and Kanaya were standing in the window. Rose shooed them, saying, "I agree that he likely isn't dead, but you wouldn't want him to be more hurt than he probably is now, do you?"

"Gueth not. Let'th go then." He allowed Nepeta to pull him the fifty or so feet to the classroom that would give them access to the area they needed. Sollux unlocked the window and lifted it so Nepeta could crawl in. He slipped through, too, and went to the small pane of glass in the door that would show him the hallway.

Karkat was running over to Gamzee while an upperclassman pushed Vriska off to give chase. In a split second decision, he threw open the door.

"Nepeta, get Vrithka out of the way." His voice held a certain note of urgency and command that had Nepeta reacting immediately and without question: she practically flew out the door to tackle Vriska. Sollux picked up the desk with his powers and launched it at the guy going after Karkat, consequences be damned.

When everything had mostly settled down, the damage assessment began. Sollux reclined against the doorframe, watching Karkat talk to Gamzee before Tavros interrupted. Karkat moved to the side before spinning and walking in Sollux's direction. The Gemini righted himself and preceded the shorter troll into the room. Karkat kicked the door shut and found an interest in the tiles beneath his feet; he rubbed his right arm, more out of awkwardness than pain.

"Thith converthation ith great Kk," Sollux said after a minute of silence.

"Shut up, I was trying to think of what to say."

"Are you thure you were thinking? Becauthe you didn't thay anything."

Karkat grumbled and shot a withering look at Sollux. "I was trying to fucking apologize earlier for the other day. I…" The Cancer shuffled his feet, looking daggers at the floor like it was the cause of all his problems. "… didn't mean to give you the impression I didn't like you. I was surprised: I never thought you'd be flushed for me, too."

Sollux sighed and hoisted himself onto a desk. He could already feel Karkat's anger over his next statement, even before he said it. "I'm not fluthed for you."

"What the fuck? Then why the FUCK did you try to kiss me?" Oh, look, there it was; his head shot up, eyes narrowed, and his hands balled up into fists. The Cancer bared his sharp fangs, looking very close to attacking Sollux.

"I'm not fluthed for you, Kk, but that doethn't mean I don't like you."

That sentiment didn't put a dent in Karkat's growing fury. "You – you – fuck! You don't just fucking try to kiss someone, fuckass; if there's no reason, you don't gogdamned do it! You lead me on, you piece of shit. I thought you actually – fuck. Just, just fuck. Fuck you." The smaller troll continued to rage, stomping his feet and cursing up a storm.

Sollux slid off the desk, his own anger bubbling up. His hands crackled with red and blue energy, but he shook it off before he lost control. "Kk. Kk – fucking. Kk. Karkat!"

The use of his name brought Karkat's rant to a screeching halt. Slightly wide eyes fixed on Sollux because he could never recall a time the Gemini had called him anything but "Kk". Some part of him assumed for some unknown and completely ridiculous reason that Sollux couldn't say his name (like that made _any_ sense, but he had nothing to prove it wrong until now).

"Gog, just fucking thut up for a damn thecond. You won't even let me get a word in." Karkat made a sound of protest, but Sollux slapped a hand over his mouth. "Karkat, thop being difficult. I'm not leading you on, damn it; I _like_ you, but I'm not _fluthed_ for you _yet_. You can kith thomeone you like, can't you?"

Karkat nodded his head jerkily.

"I think being thurounded by all thith human thtuff ith changing our veiwth on relathionthipth, Kk." He removed his hand from the Cancer's mouth. "Uthually, you'd thtart correcting me about how we don't 'like' anyone, we only hate and pity them."

Karkat rubbed his arm, anger drained from him. "Well, we are on fucking Earth, have been for three years. Alternian rules and traditions don't really make a difference anymore… Why are you smirking at me?"

Sollux moved closer to Karkat, tilting his head down the scant few inches it took to reach his mouth. Their mouths met in a simple kiss that left Karkat blushing profusely. His eyelids drooped as Sollux passed a hand lightly over one of his small horns. Once the Gemini pulled away, a dam seemed to break inside Karkat. Stutters and nonsense sounds escaped him, and he rushed to the door, throwing it open and escaping, not realizing he was still blushing horribly.

/Schoolstuck/

Tavros glanced at Vriska, who didn't look like she was going to be any help: she was admiring the wall opposite her. The Taurus gulped nervously, though he felt reassured when Gamzee placed a hand on his shoulder. He took a deep breath and looked at his friends.

"It, uh, didn't work out?" His voice shook, and Tavros knew he sounded more unsure than was normal for him, yet none of them noticed. They all looked to Vriska, but she shrugged. "I've, um, been flushed for, uh, Gamzee for a while, so…" Tavros waved a hand meekly between himself and Gamzee. The highblood smiled at him.

"That's great, Tavros!" Nepeta said, coming over to hug him. He let her even though it was a bit awkward. She retreated back to Equius' side, muttering about updating her shipping wall tomorrow.

No one found it weird his relationship with Vriska lasted only a day or two. They all thought it was weirder he and Vriska had even _started_ a relationship.

With the air cleared of that, they decided it would be best to get to class. Rose informed them that she needed to get back to tell Jade, John, and Dave to wrap up their little distraction and left with Kanaya. Feferi congratulated him, too, before she went off with Eridan. Equius ordered Nepeta to get to class, following her to make sure she actually got there. That left Aradia and Vriska with Tavros and Gamzee.

"I will see you tomorrow, Tavros," Aradia said, smiling and patting his shoulder then walking off.

Vriska grinned at them. "Am I not the best moirail? I got you exactly what you wanted, Tav. Our little charade was put to an end prematurely, but that's fine."

Gamzee went from smiling to frowning in a heartbeat. He squeezed Tavros' shoulder a little tighter than necessary. "I don't want you to be Tav's motherfucking moirail. You've never been anything but a pain to him; anyone can fucking vouch for that."

"Uh, G-Gamzee—"

"You don't control his other quadrants. If he wants me as his moirail, then he can have me as his moirail. Just because you are his matesprit, it doesn't mean you can dictate what he wants." Vriska brushed her hair over her shoulder, a smug smile on her face.

"I might not be able to fucking tell him what he wants, but I can tell him what's _good_ for him, and you aren't."

"How can you say I'm not good for him? I got you two together! You would have been dancing around each other forever if I hadn't said anything to you, idiot."

The Capricorn took a step forward, relinquishing his grip on Tavros' shoulder. Tavros panicked at the absolute hatred he could see in Gamzee's expression.

"You didn't do motherfucking anything. I would have told Tav how I felt eventually."

Vriska laughed. "'Eventually'? You don't have very long, Gamz! His blood is so low on the spectrum, he'll be dead in a few years."

Whatever Gamzee was going to say died in his throat. His eyes darted to Tavros then back to Vriska. Tavros himself had nothing to say. Problems like their lifespans had been pushed so far back in their minds, they never brought it up. But it was true: he wouldn't live much longer than ten, twenty, maybe thirty years. Having orange blood, he was doomed with a lifespan that would fall centuries short of Gamzee's. What was ten or twenty years compared to that?

"You really didn't think of that, did you? Am I the only one still concerned with our traditions and shit? I mean, ever since we got to Earth, everyone has been acting buddy-buddy like there is no caste system."

"That's how we've always acted, spider bitch," came Terezi's voice. She strode out of the cafeteria and over to them, passing Vriska to stand across from her. "We were friends before the game started, and we knew each other's blood colors then. Sgrub and being on Earth haven't changed anything."

"Are you all-knowing now, Seer?"

"As much as you are generous, Thief."

Vriska glared, attention switching between all three of them. She locked back on to Terezi. "Whatever. It might not matter anymore for caste, but it still plays a part in lifespans." She turned with a huff and marched away.

The ensuing silence was suffocating. Gamzee was purposefully looking anywhere but at Tavros, and Tavros' heart was breaking little by little as he dwelled on the fact that he would have so little time with his matesprit, that Gamzee would watch him die and probably move on to someone else. Would it be selfish of him to ask Gamzee not to take another matesprit? But that would be hundreds of years of loneliness, of only a memory for company. He would never subject Gamzee to that. Oh, these thoughts were so stupid.

Terezi sniffed inconspicuously, catching a whiff of salty peanut butter tears. This would not do.

She crouched by Tavros' side. "Tav, don't cry. Vriska doesn't know anything."

The mention of crying snapped Gamzee out of his visual avoidance. He knelt down on Tavros' other side and grabbed the hand Tavros was using to scrub the tears off his cheeks.

"Tav…"

"I-it's okay. I'm, uh, fine." _Why do I cry over everything?_ "It's just, not fair," he finished quietly.

Terezi stood up, startling both of them. They looked up at her. "I don't think you should give up yet, Tav. Have you noticed since we've been on Earth, Gamzee hasn't gone insane unless provoked? Eridan hasn't had any kind of homicidal tendencies (that were unusual for humans, anyway). We appear human to the other humans, so maybe the Scratch rewired our genetic makeup enough to make us blend in. Highbloods are supposed to live for a very long time, but for humans, that's impossible. If it fixed that problem, why wouldn't it fix lowbloods living a much shorter life?"

"I-I guess that, uh, makes sense."

"Besides, Tav, that's motherfucking years away. We can all up and enjoy our time and forget about it until it's really fucking relevant," Gamzee said determinedly, squeezing Tavros' hand.

Terezi clapped her hands together. "Since that's settled, let's get to class. I need to interrogate Karkles about this 'fight' since I missed all of it." She grinned maniacally.

/Schoolstuck/

After school ended, John went to his locker and shoved his books in excitedly. He had something hilarious to tell Dave. He doubted it would be up to Dave's standards of irony, but it was still really funny. John just had to find him because Dave hadn't shown up for fourth period. It wasn't a new occurrence that he skipped class; he would usually tell John, though. So John was on a mission to find his best bro.

He checked the library first since it was closest, then bounded upstairs to peek in the music room. Not there… The art room was empty, too, and the crowd of students in the halls was thinning rapidly. John hoped Dave hadn't left already. He decided to check the gym before giving up and going home. If Dave wasn't in there, he could contact him over Trillian or something.

The gym was mostly empty except for a few slow dressers and kids who liked to play basketball once classes were done. John walked up the short flight of stairs leading to the court, sighing and turning to go when he didn't see who he was looking for. Dave had been disappearing more and more often, and John was starting to worry. He froze when he heard Terezi start talking in the stands above him.

"So, Dave, have you told –"

"No."

"Why so quick to answer? Is that cool kid façade cracking?" John could practically hear the grin in Terezi's voice, stretching from ear to ear.

"I told you, Terezi, I'm not telling him. It would be like going fishing and opening a can of worms to find out they're all decomposing, and then, fucking look at that: you can't fish."

A beat of silence. "What was that supposed to mean?"

"It means I can't tell him because it would ruin our friendship."

"So Mr. Dave Strider _does_ care about something! But, really, Dave, I'm blind, and your crush is so obvious to my nose. I'm sure anyone with eyes that work can see how you feel."

"Fuck you."

"I don't understand why you won't tell him. I can't see him ending your friendship over that."

John could be stupid sometimes, and he wasn't always the best at putting the pieces together, but this was glaringly obvious to him. Dave had a crush on someone but was too afraid to tell John because he thought he'd be jealous! That was definitely it! (that was totally not it; what are you even—)

He was about to reveal himself when Dave continued speaking, sounding very slightly exasperated. That was strange. Dave never lost his cool.

"He gave me a recap of Karkat's first conversation with him and how he had to explain he wasn't a homosexual."

"What's a 'homosexual', Dave? Is it something delicious?"

"It smells like a bunch of filled pails stewing in a hot room for days." He must have received some type of hit for this comment because he let out a grunt of pain. "Fuck, sorry. It's when two guys – or girls – like each other."

"Humans actually have a word for that? How stupid."

"Yeah, and it's the reason I can't tell him. Egbert's cool with a lot of things, but I don't think he'd be down with me liking him."

Oh. Oh, John was very wrong with his first assumption (no shit, what kind of stupid guess was that?). John descended the stairs backwards, almost tripping on the last one and letting out a frightened noise. Shuffling came from above, but when Dave and Terezi leaned over the railing, no one was there.

/Schoolstuck/

"Hey, Kk."

"What?"

"You want to go on a date?"

Karkat's head rose slowly. His hand stopped in the middle of answering one of the questions for his math homework.

"What?" he repeated stupidly.

Sollux propped his head on his palm. "I athked if you wanted to go on a date, Kk."

Karkat set his pencil down and turned fully to face Sollux. They were both lazing around and half-assing their homework in Dave's living room. Sollux, by some kind of crazy, lucky happenstance, had not gotten expelled from school or arrested for breaking a person's spine. The nurse had bought the story of him hitting the kid for messing with Karkat, and the upperclassman tripping and falling down the stairs. It was the dumbest lie, but humans were so gullible. So instead, Sollux had been suspended for a week. Karkat had wondered aloud how making someone stay home from school was considered a punishment, and he had not gotten an answer.

"A date?"

Sollux laughed, adjusting himself so he could lean closer to Karkat. "Yeah, Kk, a date. Like a human date, where we go out and do thingth together."

"I know what a date is!" Karkat huffed, blushing. Sollux was inching closer to him every passing second. He looked to the side and grumbled, "I guess we can go on a fucking date."

Sollux cupped Karkat's cheek and pulled him into a kiss. The Cancer melted against the touch, falling against Sollux when he rubbed one of his nubby horns at its base. They both fell back onto the couch, Karkat on top with his legs awkwardly falling off the side of the piece of furniture. Sollux nudged his leg against Karkat's, and the smaller troll moved to straddle the Gemini's hips. Tugging Karkat by his hair, Sollux pressed their mouths together again, licking along the seam of his soon-to-be-matesprit's lips; Karkat parted his lips, and Sollux's tongue slipped in.

A door slammed behind them, and they jumped apart. Dave exited the bathroom, a towel draped over his bare shoulders, having just taken a shower. He raised an eyebrow at them from behind his shades.

"Could you two not make out on my couch?"

Sollux gave him the finger and a smug grin. He slid his arm around Karkat's shoulders, but Karkat shrugged it off, glaring. "Not having any luck, Dv?"

"What do trolls even know about relationships? You all use those fucked up quadrants."

"Our quadrants are better than your measly 'love'!" Karkat argued. The Cancer was so adamant about this topic: why have only one way to classify feelings? With four ways, a person's life was infinitely better. One wouldn't have to use only one term for his feelings and keep them contained to a flimsy emotion like _love_. What even was that? _Love_. It left a weird taste in Karkat's mouth whenever he said it.

"Sure, dude. Bro said he wasn't coming home tonight, so we're fending for ourselves."

Karkat bristled at being disregarded. "You –"

"Where's the insane clown?"

Sollux frowned. "He'th neither inthane nor a clown anymore. But that'th a good quethtion." He glanced at Karkat. "Kk?"

"He's staying with Tavros tonight," he snapped. "I'm going to bed."

Karkat got up, gathered his homework (which he hardly even worked on), and stomped upstairs. Dave and Sollux heard the door crack against the wood.

"What's his problem?"

Sollux shrugged.

/Schoolstuck/

Gamzee and Tavros lay curled up on Tavros' bed. After the emotional escapade that was worrying about their lifespans, the day had progressed without further tears on Tavros' part. Now, his back was pressed against Gamzee's chest, the highblood's right arm around his waist and the left tucked under his own head. Of course, with a few concessions made for Tavros' large horns. They were content to stay in this position, and Gamzee had locked the door to preserve their privacy. It was almost midnight at the moment, but that didn't mean there wouldn't be interruptions.

Tavros let out a long breath, smiling. Being with Gamzee was comfortable _and_ comforting; he felt as if nothing bad would happen as long as they were together. If this was what human love felt like, then yes, Tavros was in love. The Taurus' eyes blinked open at his roaming thoughts.

"Gamzee?"

The Capricorn stirred slightly. "Yeah, Tav," was his slurred reply.

"If you could, uh, describe what you feel, in human words, what would you call it?"

Gamzee removed his arm from its resting place and wiped at his eyes to remove the sleep. He propped himself up to look down at his matesprit. Tavros turned over a little to better communicate.

"What's this all of a motherfucking sudden?"

"Uh, I don't know. I was just thinking, about how I feel. You don't have to, uh, say anything; I was only wondering." Tavros rolled back over, hiding his face in his pillow.

"Tav, hey." Gamzee touched his shoulder. It was more a gesture beseeching Tavros to look at him. The lowblood acquiesced, raising his head from the pillow and letting Gamzee roll him so they were facing each other. Gamzee flopped back down and wrapped his arms around Tavros, setting his chin on the shorter troll's head. Tavros let his hands press lightly against Gamzee's chest. "We've been here three years, and I still can't fucking understand human emotions for shit. They only ever talk about love; Kar compared it to our flushed quadrant. He also said humans are 'really fucking stupid' for having only one quadrant."

Tavros titled his head forward so it touched his hands, being careful of his horns. His words were low, and muffled from the angle. "But don't you, uh, think maybe our pity translates, into human love?"

Gamzee unwound an arm from Tavros and tilted the Taurus' face up to make eye contact. "Where's all this motherfucking coming from, Tav? Why are you worrying about human emotions?"

Blushing darkly, Tavros averted his gaze. "It's just…" He sighed and closed his eyes tightly. "It doesn't really, matter."

"It obviously fucking does. Come on, Tav, you can tell me anything."

Tavros shook his head vigorously, dislodging the hand that was under his chin and almost clipping Gamzee with his horns. _No. No, I can't. None of you get it. None of you understand human emotions. You wouldn't – couldn't understand. I'm such a _"horrible troll," he ground out.

"What?"

"You're all so wrapped up with quadrants. We're not on Alternia anymore!"

"Tav –"

Tavros pressed harder against Gamzee's chest, squirming around to try to get him to let go. "I can't hate, so I can't have a kismesis; I try not to fight with anyone, and I don't mediate well, so an ashen quadrant is out; and Vriska is hardly a good moirail. All I have is my flushed quadrant. I'm a horrible troll when it comes to relationships! I might as well be human. Love is easier to understand." He stopped struggling when Gamzee hugged him closer, burying his face in Tavros' small amount of hair. "Gamzee?"

"Tav," the Capricorn said, a smile clear in his voice, "you didn't motherfucking stutter through any of that."

"I, uh, I didn't?" He went back through his little speech and realized that Gamzee was right: he hadn't stuttered or used "uh"s or "um"s at all. But Gamzee was missing the whole point of what Tavros had just said! "That wasn't the, uh, point, Gamzee."

"I'm not really getting the fucking point here, Tav. You're not saying it very clearly."

Minding his horns and awkwardly tucking his head in the dip between Gamzee's neck and shoulder, Tavros gathered his resolve. He wasn't sure if his matesprit would understand (almost sure he wouldn't, actually), but it was now or never. The lowblood had already confessed to being flushed for him, so how would this be any different?

"I think I might, uh.. ve... o…" The last part trailed off and got lost in Gamzee's very warm skin.

Gamzee nudged Tavros back a little so he wasn't right up against the other troll. "Wanna try again, Tav?"

"I think, uh, I might l-love you," Tavros mumbled quickly, avoiding Gamzee's searching eyes which widened after his sentence.

Seconds stretched into minutes as Tavros awaited a response. His eyes flickered up to look at the highblood a few times, but Gamzee continued to look shocked and indecisive. Tavros opened and closed his mouth a few times, debating on whether he should laugh the moment off or ask Gamzee if he was all right. In the end, he did neither, and the silence let him sink deeper into self-deprecating thoughts. The Taurus moved slightly to pull away; the movement jarred Gamzee out of his stupor.

"Tavros." That was not a good sign. Gamzee let Tavros move away and sit up, he following suit. The Capricorn placed his hands on Tavros' shoulders. "I get that you're motherfucking special because you can feel this human shit and that maybe we need to fucking learnt to feel it, too, but I can't all up and return the feeling. You're my matesprit, though, and I'm still totally fucking flushed for you. Besides, you don't need any other quadrants, especially if Vriska is a motherfucking part of them."

"I have to, uh, at least give her a chance," he defended. "We've only been, moirails for a day, and I know I, uh, said she wasn't a good one, but that doesn't, mean I should give up yet."

"Tav." Oh, good, back to using his nickname – if in a disapproving tone. Tavros felt like he had dodged a bullet with the use of his nickname back in play.

"Gamzee," he said defiantly, crossing his arms.

"Let's go to fucking sleep, Tav. It's," Gamzee glanced at the clock, "one in the morning. We can talk about this tomorrow after school."

"Fine."

The taller troll got up to hit the lights, bathing the room in darkness. Only the faint trace of moonlight lit the room as Gamzee climbed back into the bed. Tavros had already lain back down, facing away from his matesprit. A moment passed before he felt Gamzee's arm back around him. The Taurus let his feelings go and snuggled close to Gamzee.

Right as he was drifting off, he heard a whisper of, "I'm sorry, Tav."

/Schoolstuck/

_Author's Notes:_

_8luh, yeah, I dunno. Oh! I caught someones kiriban on dA and asked her to draw a scene from this fic (specifically the very end of chapter 3). Here is the link: http: / / the-everlasting-ash .deviantart .com / # / d477jk2__ (You guys know the drill: remove the spaces) Go give her love because she is awesome!_

_Next order of business, reviews:_

Zamp Night _Yes, indeed. Go Gamzee~_

ninjaboy246_ It is mainly a GamTav, but I will be focusing on many different couples (more will show themselves in a few chapters)_

neko-hime-cfi_ I sort of incorporated the whole "what is gay" thing into this chapter. Hope it was good enough~_

trevoor_ I'm flattered my writing can make up for the lack of pairings you like. And I'm sorry for getting your hopes up. This story is definitely not abandoned!_

H3H3H3_ Of course you got thanked~ And we sort of made up. I still don't trust her nearly as much, but we are talking again._

-xxCloudEnvyxx-_ Thanks so much :) I'm definitely going to be writing much more~_

Skippie_ My life is settling back down, and thanks for being patient (this applies to eveyone else who is following this fic, of course)_

Azrak_ Thanks (insert little heart here that doesn't show up on ff)  
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azamichaaaan_ You make me blush. I doubt it's the best one, but thank you!_

Ranes_ Your English is actually very good~ (That second "your" should be "you're", though, but other than that, good job :) )__ And my life is balancing itself out again, so it's all good. Thanks for caring~_

Yaoi'sWhore_ I still love you guys, too. T_T_

_Man, you all make me feel so loved. You guys rock, and it makes me want to write forever and ever~ I hope you continue to enjoy my fic, and thanks for being so considerate. ;_;_

_And, as always, a big thanks to the news story alerters/favoriters!_

_MusicofFire_

_P.S. Will it remove the reviews from that note if I get rid of it?  
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